The latest on the House speaker race

House Republicans are concerned that none of the declared speaker candidates will be able to get the requisite 217 votes on the House floor.   

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Michael McCaul told CNN, “It’s going to be very difficult, but we have to get there.”

And Rep. Vern Buchanan warned that if the eventual nominee can’t get to 217 votes on the floor, the conference may find itself in the undesirable position of having to work with Democrats.

A lot of members "don't want to work with Democrats, but it might end up to be a point where that's the only way. We’ve got to get the government open. People are very angry, upset,” the Florida Republican said.

Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky said “probably, not immediately” when asked whether he believed any of the candidates can reach the requisite votes on the floor. 

Rep. Dusty Johnson told CNN that his constituents “just can’t believe that we’re this bad” and said the “chaos has been absolutely inexcusable.”  

Pressed on the challenge of securing 217 votes, the South Dakota Republican said of the eight candidates, “I think at least half of them could get there. The other half might struggle a little bit. We’re going to have to figure out how to get our act together. Big boys and big girls have got to quit making excuses and we’ve got to just go get it done.”

Rep. Don Bacon said he’s confident that there will be a new House speaker Tuesday night and that the conference should support “a majority of the majority.”

“I think people are so discouraged by what's happened the last three weeks, that they want to come together. I think we have a great team in there right now. They're making some great cases, and I think we'll have a speaker tomorrow night. I'm hopeful for that,” the Nebraska Republican said.

Though Bacon would not say who he would support directly, he praised Majority Whip Tom Emmer.

Bacon had a message for those members who set the process in motion by voting to vacate the chair, which ended the speakership of Kevin McCarthy.

“I hope everybody learned a lesson. When you're five people or eight people and you undercut the majority, there's a price to pay. And that's what happened last week,” he said.

Bacon also addressed the threatening calls that he and his family have received. Several Republicans who opposed Rep. Jim Jordan’s speakership bid said they are experiencing angry calls, menacing messages and even death threats since casting their votes.

“The bullying and the threat-making, the harassment, that's not OK,” he said. “As a Republican I reject it. And if you want to bully and harass myself, it ain’t gonna work, right? So hopefully they figured that out.”

A number of House Republicans were still undecided on whom they will back as speaker as they headed into a forum where the candidates will make their pitch.

There is also disagreement about whether members will automatically fall in line behind whichever candidate gets the most votes, foreshadowing that the same divisions that have trapped the House GOP in this crisis are not showing any signs of letting up. 

House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan, who dropped out of the race Friday after a majority of the conference voted against him on a secret ballot, told CNN’s Manu Raju, "I’m for the Republican.”

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, who also had a failed speakership bid, told CNN he had spoken to all the candidates but was not ready to endorse. 

“I’m going to hear the forum right now,” Scalise said. 

A number of the New York freshmen Republicans who were part of the opposition against Jordan told CNN they were not ready to endorse a candidate or announce who they are endorsing.

GOP Rep. Anthony D’Esposito told CNN of the candidates, "I'm looking forward to hearing from them tonight.”

“I haven’t said who I’m supporting yet,” GOP Rep. Nick LaLota told CNN.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia told CNN she hasn’t endorsed a candidate and when asked if there was anyone she liked she said, “No.”

GOP Rep. Mario Diaz Balart, who has endorsed Rep. Byron Donalds, said he could support any of the eight candidates.

“Do I have my preference? Yes. Could I support any of them? Absolutely,” he told CNN. “What I want to do is support whoever wins the election.”

That theory doesn’t work for everyone, though. GOP Rep. Chip Roy, who has also endorsed Donalds, said he wouldn’t necessarily support the conference nominee.

After giving his speech at tonight’s candidate forum, Rep. Dan Meuser dropped out of the speaker’s race, per members in the room.

The Pennsylvania Republican then got a standing ovation, and members said it was an honorable move. 

Eight other Republicans are still in the running. 

Meuser, who dropped out of the speaker's race for other "commitments," warned that the GOP dysfunction could cost the party the House and said that Trump supported his decision to withdraw.

Asked by CNN’s Manu Raju how concerned he is that the leadership crisis will cost Republicans the majority, he said, “if it keeps up any longer I think it will. We have time to correct it — we’ve got to get to work.” 

“I felt that it was in the best interest in the end,” he said of his decision to drop out. “I came in late, I have other commitments that I want to adhere to. Largely, leading President Trump’s campaign in Pennsylvania. We have great candidates, and I wrote up a plan of how to improve the speaker’s office making it a members-first office, which in the end is a people's-first office — and a few of the candidates up there have adopted some of my ideas.”

Meuser said Trump supported his decision to withdraw from the race, adding that he believes the GOP will get a strong speaker.

"We’ve got to have a fresh start. We’ve got to have respect for each other," Meuser said.

The Pennsylvania Republican said he hasn't decided whether he will endorse a candidate. “I have a couple of people in mind,” he said.

Republican House members told CNN that their constituents back home are angry about the dysfunction in Washington as the lawmakers expressed renewed fears that the chaos could cost them their House majority.

Rep. Vern Buchanan said his constituents are “very worked up” about the GOP leadership crisis and “they think all of us are incapable.” 

He said “it’s going to be tough” when asked whether he’s concerned it will cost Republicans the majority. “That’s a year away. Right now this week, we need to get back in business,” said Buchanan, who is backing fellow Florida Rep. Byron Donalds for the job.

“People are very angry and upset. I just got back from the district in Sarasota, Florida, and people are very worked up down there about that. They think all of us are incapable. We’ve got to stay here until we get it done,” he said.

Rep. Brett Guthrie of Kentucky said the GOP leadership crisis "shows that we’re not functioning as a majority. And when you lose that you lose the ability to govern.”

And Rep. Victoria Spartz of Indiana said that while the situation illustrates the GOP is about “freedom,” she also said it shows that the institution is “broken.”

“I think it looks like we have freedom in our party and we want to hold our leadership accountable,” she said. “I think we need to just deliberate until we get a speaker because I think it’s important for us to govern.”

Republican Rep. Chip Roy of Texas said he’s supporting GOP Rep. Byron Donalds for speaker but demurred when asked whether he’d support any of the candidates who are vying for the gavel.

“We’ll see. I didn’t sign the pledge thing that has gone around,” he said, referring to an effort put forward by Rep. Mike Flood pledging to back on the floor whoever the GOP elects as nominee. “I think we need to focus on making sure it’s someone (who's) going to lead this party in the right direction. We'll get in here, we'll hear from all nine. ... There's a number of those guys that I can support on the floor.”

When asked whether Republicans should unite in the room before coming to the floor for a final vote, Roy said, “I think it’s kind of borne out that I had a point a couple of weeks ago that that might have been a good thing to do."

But when pressed on whether he thought there was anyone who could get the necessary 217 votes on the floor, he said, "Well, we need to get in there and do our best to try.”

Speaker candidate Byron Donalds said that “my pitch is very simple” to his conference.

“This is going to be a process where it's member-driven, not speaker-driven. We need to get back to work, secure our border, fund our government responsibly and hold this administration accountable. And, last but not least, our members, we got to be focused on purpose and mission. That's it.”

The Florida Republican said he thinks former President Donald Trump will be watching the process and that he is “going to be happy” with the result.

“I spoke to the president. I think the president is going to watch us through our process. I think he's going to be happy with who's going be the next speaker of the House,” Donalds said.

Meanwhile, Rep. Mike Flood said all nine members running for speaker have signed his unity pledge that they will support the conference's eventual nominee on the floor.

Rep. Carlos Gimenez told CNN's Manu Raju he believes fellow Florida Rep. Byron Donalds, whom he is supporting as speaker, “can unite us,” but said he is willing to back whoever ends up as the nominee. 

“I have nothing against any of the other people,” Gimenez said when asked whether he would be open to voting for any of the other eight candidates.

Gimenez previously described himself as “only Kevin,” referring to ousted House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

“If he comes back on the ballot, I’ll still be with Kevin, but he’s not going to be on the ballot, so ... I’ll back the nominee," Gimenez said

GOP Rep. Mike Garcia said the impasse in the House is “dilutive” to the Republican Party’s efforts to keep its majority in the chamber next year.

“It’s not positive, it's dilutive to our efforts, obviously, in keeping the majority," the California Republican told CNN's Manu Raju. He added that "if we can get the seat filled, if we can get whoever it is to put the trains back on the rails again" and start getting appropriations bills passed and avoid a government shutdown, "then we recover from it."

Garcia also said he’s hearing from his constituents that “they want to have a speaker of the House,” saying, “both sides of the aisle frankly just want us to finish this process.”

Garcia said he is supporting GOP Whip Tom Emmer now, but ultimately, he plans to support whoever wins the nomination.

“The largest plurality of folks at least is recognizing we have to get someone across the goal line. I do think there’s an appetite for a compromise candidate at this point,” he said.

Garcia added, “We’re in a blizzard of crises right now, and to not have a meaningful check and balance on this administration is very dangerous.”