There is an assumption that the GOP will take the House in 2022, and it’s not a bad assumption, even though we should not in any way give up on the idea that the Democrats can do it, with a lot of work, and a lot of Stacey Abrams out there. But let’s go with the assumption for a moment. Matt Gaetz just promised that he will nominate Donald Trump as Speaker.

This is obviously not the first time that we’ve heard this idea. But coming from Gaetz, it likely truly does represent the thinking of the people that have more control over the House right now than Kevin McCarthy. McCarthy is almost entirely toothless right now. There is nothing he can do to control Boebert, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Gosar, Cawthorne, not one of them and they represent Trump, the leader.

But more importantly, the MAGAs would love such an idea, whether Trump accepts the idea or not. The problem for Democrats is that one of the best ways to draw every MAGA GOP voter out there is to promise to bring Trump back into something. Perhaps Trump would only serve a couple of months before he started campaigning again (there is money to raise out there), but the symbolism would mean everything.

It also gives McCarthy a bit of an issue. He has tried to remain in good standing with Trump, and yet it’s all because he desperately wants to be speaker. We know how McCarthy really felt and probably still feels about Trump when he was on the phone with Trump during the attack and the next day. Gaetz has a lot of power (for now) and if Garland refuses to go ahead with the prosecution, Gaetz will still have a lot of power. Even without Gaetz, the same type of people will garner a lot of votes by making the same promise.

Here was Gaetz today:

Matt Gaetz just told me at a press conference that if Republicans win the House in 2022, he will move to install Trump as House Speaker.

— Alexander Nazaryan (@alexnazaryan) December 7, 2021

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