Mary Trump, who is the niece of former President Donald Trump, didn’t mince words as she called her uncle the “big loser” in the ongoing battle among congressional Republicans to choose the new House speaker. This statement came on Wednesday following the House Republicans’ nomination of Louisiana Representative Steve Scalise to represent the party.
Scalise secured the nomination with a vote count of 113 to 99, defeating Ohio Representative Jim Jordan, who had received Trump’s endorsement and was favored by MAGA Republicans. Scalise’s victory is seen as an appeal to the party’s more moderate members. While a floor vote in the speaker race is not expected to take place on Wednesday, it remains uncertain whether Scalise has garnered enough support to reach the required threshold of 217 votes.
This vote highlighted that many Republicans went against Trump’s endorsement of Jordan, even though the former president continues to enjoy popularity among the party’s conservative base and is the leading candidate in the 2024 Republican presidential primary.
Mary Trump, who often criticizes her uncle, took to X, formerly Twitter, to slam Donald Trump as the “loser” in the speaker battle. In her post, she wrote, “Make no mistake. There was one BIG loser today, and it wasn’t Jim Jordan. It was Donald. Donald today learned once again that his endorsement means nothing—or even better—spells doom for whoever accepts it.” She added, “His grip over the Republican Party is eroding faster than his net worth. Donald is a cheap conman still charging for his cheap product, but a lot of people aren’t buying it anymore. He’s a nothing. He’s a loser.”
Former U.S. Representative Fred Upton, a critic of Trump who represented Michigan in Congress for decades, appeared on MSNBC to comment on the vote, stating, “Trump doesn’t usually do this unless he thinks he’s going to win, so it’s a big loss for him, for sure.
Susan Glasser, a writer for The New Yorker, pointed out, “Donald Trump didn’t have to endorse in the House Speaker race, but he did, and his candidate, Jim Jordan, lost.
Trump had previously endorsed Jordan in a Truth Social post on Friday, where he described Jordan as a “GREAT Speaker of the House” and praised his achievements.
However, it’s worth noting that several of Jordan’s supporters have stated that they do not plan to vote for Scalise in a House floor vote. Representative Lauren Boebert of Colorado expressed her disappointment in a post to X, saying, “In conference, Jordan received 99 votes, and Scalise received 113. We had a chance to unify the party behind closed doors, but the Swamp and K Street lobbyists prevented that. The American people deserve a real change in leadership, not a continuation of the status quo.
