In a surprising turn of events, former President Donald Trump's endorsement for the new House speaker failed to secure the nomination for House Judiciary Committee chairman Jim Jordan. Instead, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise emerged as the GOP's pick for the top House lawmaker in a secret ballot on Wednesday. This outcome raised questions about the strength of Trump's endorsement and was seen by some as a repudiation of the former president.

Moderate Democrat Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota expressed his belief that Scalise's selection over Jordan seemed like a clear rejection of Trump. He suggested that supporters of Scalise might have reservations about aligning themselves with a decision that could be interpreted as a public snub to the former president.

However, not all Republicans saw it this way. R-Texas Representative Troy Nehls dismissed the idea that Scalise's victory was a repudiation of Trump's endorsement, asserting that Trump remained the leader of the party. He urged Republicans who had issues with Trump to "get over themselves" and emphasized that Jordan still garnered significant support, receiving 99 votes.

Trump's campaign did not comment on the outcome of the nomination process. Meanwhile, Jordan, despite losing the nomination, expressed his intention to vote for Scalise as speaker and even planned to give a nominating speech on the House floor when the vote takes place. He has also been urging his supporters to back Scalise.

Notably, some Republicans, including Reps. Chip Roy and Marjorie Taylor Greene, have declared that they will not vote for Scalise. This refusal to support the chosen nominee highlights the divisions within the Republican Party as they seek to elect a new House speaker following the historic ouster of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

The selection process for the next speaker has proven to be challenging. House Republicans met behind closed doors for over two hours on Tuesday night to hear final pitches from Scalise and Jordan. They will reconvene on Wednesday morning for a closed-door vote before nominating their candidate on the House floor.

Opinions among GOP lawmakers vary on the timeline for selecting a speaker. Some expressed optimism that a decision could be reached by the end of the week, while others anticipated a lengthier process. Rep. Mike Garcia of California estimated the odds of selecting a speaker by Wednesday morning as 50/50. Meanwhile, Rep. Greg Murphy of North Carolina believed it would be "very difficult" to reach a consensus on the issue.

Rep. Kat Cammack of Florida raised concerns about potential backroom deals influencing the selection process, referring to promises made and broken during previous speaker elections. She revealed that she asked the candidates about any such deals and only Jordan explicitly stated that he would not honor such requests. Cammack found this response telling.

Despite the challenges, some Republicans remained hopeful that a speaker would be chosen this week. Rep. Ralph Norman of South Carolina described the atmosphere during the closed-door meeting as "very cordial" and expressed encouragement about the prospects of making a decision. He pledged to vote for Scalise if he emerged as the majority's choice.

Other GOP representatives, such as Nicole Malliotakis of New York, expressed their commitment to support the majority vote-getter. Malliotakis, who was supporting Jordan, stated that she would vote for Scalise if he secured the nomination, and she hoped others would make the same commitment.

Ahead of the election, House Republicans were expected to consider a rule regarding the threshold for nominating a speaker candidate. The proposal involved raising the requirement from a simple majority of the conference to 217 members, representing a full House majority. This potential change added an additional layer of complexity to an already contentious process.