McCarthy opponent Chip Roy says he won't succumb to 'threats' from GOP colleagues: 'We won't back down'

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McCarthy opponent Rep. Chip Roy not going to back down to 'threats'

Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, stands by his decision not to vote for Rep. Kevin McCarthy for House speaker on 'America Reports.'

Rep-elect Chip Roy, R-Texas, maintained his opposition to Kevin McCarthy's speakership bid on Tuesday, vowing not to succumb to "threats" he said he received from GOP colleagues angered by his refusal to support the GOP House leader.

McCarthy fell short of securing the 218 votes required to become the next House speaker in the second and third rounds of voting on the House floor Tuesday afternoon, despite major concessions to appease members of the House Freedom Caucus, who argue he has not proven to be worthy to be speaker of the new Republican majority. 

In an interview "America Reports" ahead of the third round of voting, Roy revealed that he and others were threatened by McCarthy ally Mike Rogers, R-Ala., during the GOP conference that morning over their withheld support for the House GOP leader. The meeting was described by other lawmakers as "hostile." Roy said he believes McCarthy "lost votes" because of it.

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Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) speaks with reporters as he arrives to a House Republican Caucus meeting at the U.S. Capitol Building on November 14, 2022 in Washington, DC. Tomorrow House Republicans will hold elections for leadership positions for the 118th congress. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)  (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

"Mike Rogers threatened to say he was going to kick those of us off of any committees who dared to challenge the coronation of the speaker. And the reality is, that was a threat. And it was not received well by a lot of people in the room," Roy said.

"We will not back down until we get in a room and decide how we will be able to stand up and fight for the American people no matter who the speaker is." he added.

Roy, who has been an outspoken opponent of McCarthy's ascension to the speakership, slammed the GOP leader as a member of the Washington establishment who has betrayed the party at times to vote with a Democrat minority. Instead, Roy said he will support a GOP lawmaker who has a demonstrated history of standing up to "the swamp." 

"What I’m not going to do is blindly do what the swamp does. My constituents didn’t’ send me here to do that," Roy said. 

"Is anybody listening to this actually happy with what Congress is doing? Is anybody out there? Are you? Anybody in America, do you think Congress is doing a good job? The answer is no."

"So, why would we embrace the status quo? Why would we keep doing the same thing over and over again? That is what is happening in the room. And this morning, a group of voters threatened some of us and they lost votes on that," Roy stressed.

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House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. (REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst)

"This is about changing this town," he added. "I was not sent here for second place. I was sent here to get the job done and we need the leadership and tools to get it done."

McCarthy won 203 votes in the first two rounds of voting but needs 218 to win the speaker’s gavel. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, won 19 votes for speaker in the second round, and Republicans in the House Freedom Caucus wanted to expand that number in the third round and show other GOP lawmakers that support can be built around someone other than McCarthy, R-Calif.

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House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of Calif. and U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File & Michaels Reynolds/Pool Photo via AP, File)

Jordan was nominated in the third round by Roy, who said the House has rarely met in such large numbers for such a long time to debate.

"What we're doing is exercising our right to vote and debate and have a discussion about the future of this country through the decision of choosing a speaker," Roy said on the House floor. "I want the tools or I want the leadership to stop the swamp from running over the average American every single day."