Fox News host Brian Kilmeade had a bit of a hot mic moment on Tuesday during a vote to see whether Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) had the support necessary to become the next Speaker of the House.
As the clerk called the roll and recorded the votes one by one, most voted for Jordan — although the vote ultimately failed with the Ohio Congressman falling just over a dozen votes short of what he needed to secure the gavel. But when the clerk read off Rep. Don Bacon’s (R-NE) name, Bacon replied with a vote for former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA).
WATCH:
Fox's Brian Kilmeade caught on a hot mic calling Rep. Don Bacon a "dumbass" for voting McCarthy. pic.twitter.com/0dgKhUZiUh
— nikki mccann ramírez (@NikkiMcR) October 17, 2023
There was a long pause after Bacon gave his vote, after which Kilmeade could clearly be heard saying, “dumba**” — apparently in reference to the Nebraska Republican’s vote.
Bacon has been at the center of some of the fury around the search for a new House speaker and has said that he lays the blame at the feet of the eight Republicans who voted with Democrats to oust McCarthy — marking the first time in history that the Speakership has ever been vacated by force.
Despite the fact that McCarthy has since endorsed Jordan — and supported failed speaker candidate and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) before that — Bacon is among the 20 Republicans who have continued to hold out.
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BREAKING: Here are the 20 Republicans that just voted against @Jim_Jordan for Speaker on the first ballot:
Bacon (NE)
Buck (CO)
Chavez-Deremer (OR)
D'Esposito (NY)
Diaz-Balart (FL)
Ellzey (TX)
Garbarino (NY)
Gimenez (FL)
Gonzales (TX)
Granger (TX)
James (MI)
Kelly (PA)
Kiggans…— Greg Price (@greg_price11) October 17, 2023
“You can’t have five, lately, it’s been eight out of 222 making demands that everybody else has to comply with their wishes. I’m not prepared to do that,” Bacon told a local ABC affiliate in Omaha over the weekend. “I don’t think Jim is the best fit for this district. If he won fairly, I’d support him. I’m not into an unfair process when 1 out of 10 is playing unfairly and breaking the rules to demand what they’re getting.”
Jordan is expected to meet with the holdouts ahead of a possible second ballot.