Ann Coulter Blasts Republican 'Idiots' Amid Speaker Battle

Conservative commentator Ann Coulter bashed House Republicans on Wednesday as members of the chamber continue to battle over who should be the next Speaker of the House.

While speaking with WOR radio host Mark Simone, Coulter said that GOP lawmakers were "complete idiots" and argued that the speaker's position didn't hold much weight given that Republicans don't control the Senate or the White House. The lower house of Congress has been without a speaker for over two weeks now since Congressman Kevin McCarthy was ousted from the position.

"I also want to say I think these Republicans are complete idiots," Coulter told Simone toward the end of the show Wednesday. "The Speaker of the House—when you have a very slim majority in the House, when the Senate is in Democrat hands, when the presidency is in Democrats hands—it doesn't matter who the Republican speaker is."

"Just nominate them, just vote for somebody, put him up there," she added. "Stop this."

Representative Jim Jordan has been nominated as Republicans' top choice for the speakership, but after two votes this week, the Ohio congressman has yet to garner the necessary 217 votes to be elected. House Democrats have remained unified behind Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

Coulter continued while speaking with Simone that lawmakers "never should have gotten rid of McCarthy," who was ousted in a 216-210 vote after a motion to vacate was brought to the floor by far-right Republican Matt Gaetz.

"This is so stupid," Coulter said. "And I don't care if it's Jordan. I don't care if it's Gaetz. I don't care if it's, you know, the most liberal member. The Speaker of the House, when we don't have the Senate or the presidency, is basically irrelevant."

In a vote on the House floor Wednesday, Jordan earned 199 votes—a knockdown from the 201 votes he garnered during the first round of voting. McCarthy blamed Gaetz for Jordan's lost votes while speaking to CNN's Manu Raju after Wednesday's session, claiming that the Florida lawmaker' had infuriated GOP members with a fundraising email Tuesday evening.

Moderate Democrats and Republicans have floated the idea of expanding speaker pro tempore Patrick McHenry's role as a temporary leader of the chamber in order to allow the House to govern. Congressional members are running short on time to pass a series of spending measures before the bipartisan stopgap bill that was passed last month expires on November 17.

While speaking to CNN Tuesday, Jeffries said that Democrats had not ruled out the idea of expanding McHenry's role, telling the network, "Our focus right now relates not just to any one individual but to getting the institution reopened."

"I have respect for Patrick McHenry. I think he is respected on our side of the aisle," Jeffries continued. There are a whole host of other Republicans who are respected on our side of the aisle. Jim Jordan is not one of them."

Newsweek reached out to Jordan's office via email for comment on Coulter's statements.