Donald Trump and Inner Circle Caught 'Off Guard' by Announcement of His Endorsement for Jim Jordan to be Speaker

Former President Donald Trump and his inner circle were allegedly taken by surprise when Texas Congressman Troy Nehls announced that Trump would be endorsing Ohio Representative Jim Jordan for speaker, RadarOnline.com has learned.

Nehls tweeted on Thursday, October 5, that Trump is backing Jordan to replace California Representative Kevin McCarthy, who was recently ousted from the speakership by a small faction in his party as well as the Democratic conference.

Nehls expressed his support for Jordan, saying that Congress should listen to the leader of their party.

"Just had a great conversation with President Trump about the Speaker's race," Nehls wrote. "He is endorsing Jim Jordan, and I believe Congress should listen to the leader of our party. I fully support Jim Jordan for Speaker of the House."

CNN's Kaitlan Collins reported on the development, stating that Trump wants the next speaker to be someone who is loyal to him. As the de facto leader of the Republican Party, Trump has enough influence to handpick the next speaker.

According to Collins, Nehls' tweet caught Trump and his team off guard, forcing the former president to publicly affirm his endorsement of Jordan shortly after midnight.

"Trump's actually looking to capitalize on the entire chaotic spectacle by going to Washington next week to endorse his pick potentially, during that GOP meeting that is set to happen on Tuesday," the CNN host told her viewers. "But that plan hit a brick wall when Congressman Troy Nehls tweeted this, catching not only Trump, but his inner circle off guard."

In the speakership race, Jordan is running against Majority Leader Steve Scalise and potentially Oklahoma Congressman Kevin Hern. It remains to be seen who will ultimately become the next speaker of the House.

This unexpected endorsement by Trump carries significant weight due to his position as the influential leader of the Republican Party. It will likely have a significant impact on the outcome of the speakership race and could potentially reshape the power dynamics within the party.

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As RadarOnline.com recently reported, Fox News was supposed to conduct an open forum interview with the Speaker candidates later this month but was forced to scrap the scheduled program after the candidates pulled out due to severe backlash from their own party.

One Republican, Rep. Carlos Gimenez of Florida, criticized the idea, stating that the question of who should be Speaker should be debated internally among Republicans rather than broadcast on TV. He described the idea as "horrible" and expressed concerns about the candidates' decision-making.

A spokesman for Jordan stated that the Ohio congressman would not participate in the event until he had the opportunity to address the conference first, which is currently scheduled for Tuesday, October 10.

Similarly, Scalise's spokesperson confirmed that the majority leader would also not be participating.