McCarthy offers deal to end standoff in U.S. House speaker fight

The contours of a deal that could make Republican leader Kevin McCarthy the House speaker have begun to emerge

The contours of a deal that could make Republican leader Kevin McCarthy the U.S. House speaker have begun to emerge after three grueling days and 11 failed votes in a political spectacle unseen in a century. It has left Republicans in disarray and exposed anew the fragility of American democracy.

The House will be back at it on Friday, with Republicans trying to elect their new House speaker — this time, against the backdrop of the second anniversary of the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. The deadly attack was an unimaginable scene of chaos that shook the country when a mob of then-President Donald Trump's supporters tried to stop Congress from certifying the Republican's 2020 election defeat.

Also read: McCarthy fails for third long day in GOP House speaker fight

Mr. McCarthy made no promises of a final vote that would secure him the Speaker's gavel, but glimmers of a deal with at least some of the far-right holdouts who have denied him support were emerging.

“We’ve got some progress going on,” Mr. McCarthy said late on Thursday, brushing back questions about the lengthy, messy process. “It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.”

The agreement Mr. McCarthy presented to the holdouts from the conservative Freedom Caucus and others centers around rules changes they have been seeking for months. Those changes would shrink the power of the Speaker’s office and give rank-and-file lawmakers more influence in drafting and passing legislation.

Even if Mr. McCarthy is able to secure the votes he needs, he will emerge as a weakened speaker, having given away some powers, leaving him constantly under threat of being voted out by his detractors. But he would also be potentially emboldened as a survivor of one of the more brutal fights for the gavel in U.S. history.