Elise Stefanik ripped for 'ridiculous and hilarious' speech praising Jim Jordan before failed speaker vote

17 October 2023

Early Tuesday afternoon, October 17, members of the U.S. House of Representatives gathered for a vote on whether or not to appoint the far-right Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) as House speaker.

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-New York) opened the session with a speech in support of confirming Jordan for the position, arguing that he would be a strong leader at a time when Israel is under attack by Hamas terrorists. Many of Jordan's critics have described him as a divisive, polarizing figure, but Stefanik argued that he could bring lawmakers together during a daunting foreign crisis. The vote, however, did not go Jordan's way; at least nine Republicans joined Democrats in voting against Jordan.

Stefanik's speech has inspired a lot of reactions on X, formerly Twitter. And some of them have been vehemently critical.

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HuffPost's Jennifer Bendery tweeted, "GOP Rep. Elise Stefanik just said something about 'failed far-left government' as she speaks in the House, which has had no speaker for ~2 weeks and cannot function, as the House GOP has imploded in full public view and struggles to lead itself out of a paper bag."

Pundit Stuart Rothenberg commented, "This Stefanik nominating speech is both ridiculous and hilarious.

The Politics Blog's Charles P. Pierce attacked Stefanik's speech as "a rollicking exercise in unintentional comedy.

Another pundit, Stephanie S. Clark, said of Stefanik, "She needs to lose her seat when the time comes."

Author Mark Jacob, a former Chicago Tribune/Chicago Sun-Times editor, posted, "Elise Stefanik gives a nominating speech for Jim Jordan, telling lie after lie with great ease as always. In utter defiance of statistics released yesterday, she declares: 'Violent crime is skyrocketing across America.' It's not, it's not, it's not. Stefanik is a fascist liar."

The Daly Planet's John Daly slammed Stefanik as a "professional liar" who "brought us George Santos."

The Washington Post's Leigh Ann Caldwell observed that House Democrats were appalled when Stefanik referenced, in a positive way, Jordan's history as a wrestling coach.

Caldwell wrote, "Stefanik's speech mentioned Jordan's skill 'on the wrestling mat,' which caused Democrats to burst out in 'whoaaaaa.' Some Democrats covered their mouths in shock. Jordan has been accused of ignoring sexual abuse on the wrestling team when he was assistant coach at Ohio State.

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