McCarthy: To unite GOP, House speaker needs to be ‘a new face’

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• JUDY WOODRUFF:

  The political bombshell burst at the U.S. Capitol just after midday. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy abruptly withdrew from the race for speaker, a contest he had once been favored to win.

  Political director Lisa Desjardins has spent the day at the Capitol, and she begins our reporting.

• REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY, Majority Leader:

  I think I shocked some of you, huh?

• LISA DESJARDINS:

  With that understatement, Kevin McCarthy shook the corridors of Congress today. House Republicans had gathered to choose their nominee for speaker when the majority leader stunned them. He said later the party is simply too divided.

• REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY:

  I think there's something to be said, for us to unite, we probably need a fresh face. I'll stay on as majority leader, but the one thing I have found talking with everybody, if we're going to unite and be strong, we need a new face to help do that.

• LISA DESJARDINS:

  The news set off a scramble in the hallways. The five-term California congressman was the front-runner for speaker, but seemed short the 218 votes needed in a full House vote.

• REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY:

  If we're going to be strong, we have got to be 100 percent united.

• LISA DESJARDINS:

  McCarthy ran afoul of the same conservatives, the House Freedom Caucus, who helped push out Speaker John Boehner. Yesterday, the group's roughly 40 members endorsed Daniel Webster of Florida.

  Congressman Tim Huelskamp of Kansas is a Freedom Caucus member.

  REP. TIM HUELSKAMP (R), Kansas: Clearly, the establishment lost today; 80 percent of — 80 percent of Americans — Republicans wanted to get a new speaker. And I think that's obviously going to happen. But K Street's got to be shaking now. They have lost two speakers in two weeks.

• LISA DESJARDINS:

  The decision leaves an already fractious House Republican Party even deeper in disarray.

  Utah Congressman Jason Chaffetz is also in the speaker's race.

  REP. JASON CHAFFETZ (R), Utah: I really do believe it's time for a fresh start. That was the whole genesis of my campaign. But we need to have a lot more family discussion, because we need to find somebody that our whole body can unite behind and do what we were elected to do.

• LISA DESJARDINS:

  Some centrist Republicans who had backed Boehner and then McCarthy now say finding the next speaker may even require reaching across the aisle to secure votes from Democrats.

• JUDY WOODRUFF:

  And Lisa is on Capitol Hill now with the latest.

  Lisa, what a day. What are you hearing about how this all gets resolved?

• LISA DESJARDINS:

  Well, the next thing — everyone, set your watches — 9:00 a.m., House Republicans are set to meet again tomorrow.

  But, Judy, a new name is emerging tonight, a familiar name, Paul Ryan, Republican of Wisconsin, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. There is tremendous pressure on him tonight, including perhaps from Speaker Boehner's office itself, for Paul Ryan to get into the race.

  So far, he has not done that. But in talking to sources both conservative and moderate in the Republican Party, there is thought tonight, Judy, that he might be the only current House Republican who could get the votes needed to be speaker.

  Other than that, I think a couple other things to notice about a possible plan B, Judy, if Ryan doesn't do it, perhaps Speaker Boehner stays on the job. And then a plan C, Judy, that's where we are, there is also talk of perhaps nominating a caretaker speaker, someone who does the job short-term, until the next president is elected.

  And with that scenario, almost Aaron Sorkin on steroids, there is talk of perhaps getting someone outside of Congress to come in as a caretaker speaker. Some were musing about Mitt Romney. I don't know if that's feasible. But it really seems it's Romney's running mate, Paul Ryan, who's getting the attention tonight.

• JUDY WOODRUFF:

  Sounds like something from a Hollywood movie.

  Lisa Desjardins, we thank you.