{"id":3439,"date":"2025-04-30T19:26:19","date_gmt":"2025-04-30T19:26:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/?p=3439"},"modified":"2025-04-30T19:26:19","modified_gmt":"2025-04-30T19:26:19","slug":"elise-stefanik-cabinet-hopes-dashed-considers-her-next-move","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/?p=3439","title":{"rendered":"Elise Stefanik, Cabinet Hopes Dashed, Considers Her Next Move"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-0\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Styrofoam packing peanuts littered an empty office in the Rayburn House Office Building across from the Capitol on Monday morning as two moving men unpacked a plush couch, an upholstered armchair, lamps and a lucite side table.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Representative Elise Stefanik of New York was back.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">This had not been the plan.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Ms. Stefanik, the self-proclaimed \u201cultra MAGA\u201d warrior whom President Trump nominated to serve as ambassador to the United Nations, had expected to sail through her Senate confirmation vote, which was to be scheduled in early April.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">So she boxed up her office. She sent off her longtime chief of staff, Patrick Hester, to start a new job at the State Department, where he ended up working for seven days. She completed a \u201cfarewell tour\u201d of her district, checked out schools for her son in New York City and was looking forward to moving into the $15 million Manhattan penthouse that comes with what is considered a fairly cushy job.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Instead, Ms. Stefanik was back here on Capitol Hill amid the peanuts, contemplating her next steps and pinning most of the blame for what happened on Speaker Mike Johnson.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-1\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">To detractors, the president\u2019s <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/03\/27\/us\/politics\/stefanik-trump-cabinet.html\" title=\"\">decision to pull Ms. Stefanik\u2019s nomination<\/a> was something akin to karmic comeuppance for a Republican lawmaker who was elected as a moderate but tacked unapologetically to the MAGA right, coming to personify the opportunistic shape-shifting that has gripped her party in the age of Mr. Trump.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Ms. Stefanik\u2019s plight seemed to crystallize in one succinct cautionary tale the limits of loyalty in the MAGA universe. Even one of the president\u2019s most stalwart defenders, an effective ally since his first impeachment trial, ultimately did not get what she had long been promised.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">To her supporters, however, the implosion of her cabinet dream was a gift in disguise, one that proved her mettle as someone willing to stomach a personal setback for the good of the team and set her up for something potentially better down the line. The result has been a new level of admiration from the president and among top G.O.P. donors, who are now encouraging her to enter the New York governor\u2019s race for 2026.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Ms. Stefanik, for her part, is taking the long view.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cResilience is one of my strengths,\u201d she said in a brief interview. \u201cWe have bounced back pretty quick. The reality is almost everyone prominent in American politics has a twist and turn.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-2\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">What has completely disintegrated since her return, however, is her relationship with Mr. Johnson, a dynamic that sets up a clash between two Trump loyalists and leaders in the House that could turn ugly as the speaker tries to pass the president\u2019s domestic policy agenda.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-3\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Ms. Stefanik is doing little to hide the fact that she finds Mr. Johnson to be dishonest. On Tuesday, she publicly called him a liar after he told reporters he was \u201chaving conversations\u201d with her and Representative Mike Lawler, another New York Republican flirting with a run for governor, about that race.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cThis is not true,\u201d she wrote on social media. \u201cI have had no conversations with the Speaker regarding the Governor\u2019s race.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The post prompted an immediate phone call from Mr. Johnson, who then corrected himself publicly.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cElise is one of my closest friends,\u201d he told reporters at the Capitol on Tuesday. \u201cWe haven\u2019t specifically talked about her running for governor. She\u2019s coming in to visit with me and it\u2019s all good.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Behind the scenes, however, the relationship has collapsed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">After Ms. Stefanik\u2019s nomination was pulled, the speaker promised her a position back at the leadership table \u2014 in the last Congress, she served as conference chair, the No. 4 Republican \u2014 and said publicly that she would also return to the Intelligence Committee. That would require removing a Republican from the panel, to preserve the balance of Democrats and Republicans.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-4\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Privately, according to three people familiar with the exchange, Mr. Johnson told her that he was considering removing another Republican \u2014 either Representative French Hill of Arkansas or Representative Pat Fallon of Texas \u2014 to make a space for Ms. Stefanik.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">But Mr. Johnson has not done so or even discussed it with them, and has yet to resolve the issue of how to return Ms. Stefanik to the committee.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-5\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In early April, when a White House official called Ms. Stefanik to whip her vote on the president\u2019s budget, she expressed frustration that the speaker had yet to deliver on any of the promises Mr. Johnson had made to her on an earlier three-way call with Mr. Trump after the withdrawal of her nomination.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Under pressure from the White House, Mr. Johnson called her and told her he had a lot of angry members to deal with, according to two people familiar with the exchange.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-6\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Ms. Stefanik, who was once close with Mr. Johnson and spent part of election night with him in his hometown, Shreveport, La., pushed back and told him bluntly, \u201cI\u2019m the angriest one.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">It was only after that heated conversation, and at a moment when she was a needed vote on the budget, that Mr. Johnson finally announced her as the new \u201cchairwoman of House Republican Leadership.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Before the election, Kevin McCarthy, the former speaker, warned her that she could face headwinds in getting out of the House if Republicans managed to keep control with a tight margin.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">After they did just that, it was immediately clear that poaching House Republicans for cabinet positions was going to be dicey.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">After former Representatives Matt Gaetz and Michael Waltz of Florida both resigned to pursue positions in the Trump administration, Ms. Stefanik was stuck in a sort of purgatory.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-7\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cIf we get the budget resolution passed this week, which is the plan, then it\u2019s possible that Elise Stefanik would go ahead and move on to her assignment at the U.N. as the ambassador there,\u201d Mr. Johnson <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/02\/24\/us\/politics\/elise-stefanik-un-ambassador-budget.html\" title=\"\">said in February<\/a>, a blunt acknowledgment of the political reality of his slim majority. \u201cI had 220 Republicans and 215 Democrats, and then President Trump began to cull the herd.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Ms. Stefanik was always aware of the math problem, people close to her said. But her senior aides now blame Mr. Johnson for avoiding a direct conversation with her about his concerns over the vote margin. Instead, they said, he quietly tried to delay her hearing and poison the well against her nomination along with other secretive moves to slow walk it while saying he supported it.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Johnson, who said publicly that Ms. Stefanik would make a great ambassador, has maintained that he did nothing to stand in her way. A spokesman for Mr. Johnson, Taylor Haulsee, said the timing for Ms. Stefanik\u2019s confirmation was \u201ca matter for the White House and the Senate to resolve\u201d and that the speaker had been supportive of whatever they decided.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Still, the Republican Conference is already a place of little trust among members, who often assume that their colleagues are trying to stab them in the back. And the blowup between Ms. Stefanik and Mr. Johnson has led to more widespread distrust of the speaker, according to other lawmakers who did not want to speak on the record about a fight between colleagues.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">For now, Ms. Stefanik is pulling in campaign donations because of what her allies are framing as a selfless decision to be a team player. She has $10 million in cash on hand, aides said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-8\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">After Mr. Trump officially pulled her nomination at the end of March, Newt Gingrich, the former speaker, called Ms. Stefanik to remind her that when cabinet nominees implode, it is typically because their own issues have jeopardized their confirmation chances. In this case, it wasn\u2019t really about her, he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Careers are long, he assured her, and after all, she was only 40 years old.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. McCarthy has also been counseling her to keep things in perspective.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cMy first advice is get up back on the horse, go on TV right away, set the stage as it is,\u201d he said he told her. \u201cThe party needs her; she is such a strong voice. No one\u2019s going to remember this next week. She\u2019s been in leadership longer than the speaker has.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-9\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The president has privately and publicly promised Ms. Stefanik a position in his administration down the line. And she is now free to appear on television, which she could not do while her nomination was pending.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-10\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cIn many ways, this has been more freeing in opening multiple paths for me to serve New Yorkers stronger than ever,\u201d she said in the interview.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Winning a governor\u2019s race in New York State is a long shot for any Republican candidate, but donors and operatives pressing Ms. Stefanik to enter see it as a win-win for her to challenge Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul. Running in New York would earn her plenty of attention and could set her up for something else down the line. Some of her allies point to the case of Lee Zeldin, who lost the New York governor\u2019s race in 2022 and landed as Mr. Trump\u2019s E.P.A. administrator.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Not everyone wants her to leave Washington.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cYou\u2019re calling about the future speaker of the House?\u201d Stephen K. Bannon, the former Trump adviser and influential podcast host, said when asked to speak about Ms. Stefanik. \u201cI\u2019m advising her to keep all options open right now. She\u2019s in a perfect position. Trump just thinks she walks on water right now. She was a trooper. She\u2019s rock solid.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cI haven\u2019t made a decision yet,\u201d Ms. Stefanik said of the governor\u2019s race, \u201cbut I am honored for the tremendous outpouring of support from voters across the state.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Alex DeGrasse, a longtime adviser to Ms. Stefanik, said that during her 10 years in Congress, Ms. Stefanik has consistently won independents and over 20 percent of Democrats.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cShe has the largest donor base of any Republican in New York ever,\u201d he said. \u201cSo of course, she\u2019s taking a strong look at it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/04\/30\/us\/politics\/elise-stefanik-trump-johnson-cabinet.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Styrofoam packing peanuts littered an empty office in the Rayburn House Office Building across from the Capitol on Monday morning as two moving men unpacked a plush couch, an upholstered armchair, lamps and a lucite side table. Representative Elise Stefanik of New York was back. This had not been the plan. Ms. Stefanik, the self-proclaimed [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3440,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3439","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-political-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3439","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3439"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3439\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3440"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3439"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3439"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3439"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}