Two from the archives that might be useful context for those following with interest the difficulty Kevin McCarthy is having sealing the speakership of the House:
1) Our 2010 review of "Young Guns: A New Generation of Conservative Leaders," by Paul Ryan, Eric Cantor, and Kevin McCarthy. The review concluded: "These guys are, after all, politicians, a fact that occasionally shines through. Mr. McCarthy was elected to Congress in 2006 after the retirement of his 'mentor and friend,' Bill Thomas, for whom Mr. McCarthy had worked for 15 years starting at age 22. Mr. Thomas had served 28 years in Congress, which makes the complaint elsewhere in the book, directed at Democratic House committee chairs, that 'the people who are making the nation's energy and tax policy for America's small business haven't been in the private sector for over three decades,' ring a bit hollow."
2) A November 1, 2021 New York Sun column, headlined "Backlash Against Biden Could Mean Speaker Kevin McCarthy": "Mr. McCarthy, 56, the Californian who would be in line to become speaker were Republicans to follow the pattern and take control of the House in the 2022 election, lacks the intellectual star power of either Messrs. Gingrich or Ryan...."