Vol. II, No. 180 From Our Region to Yours
Politics

House Republicans Pick Jim Jordan to Lead Them in the Minority, and This Reporter Is Long Brawling

Jordan beat Steve Scalise 106 to 73 behind closed doors, a fellow Republican called him "the original congressional brawler," and our markets reporter has been buying the dip in the House majority since 4 a.m.

By 2 min read

Jim Jordan smiling at a clear acrylic podium on a brightly lit stage, in a white shirt with a thin blue windowpane check and a gold patterned tie, sleeves down and no suit jacket, a small microphone clipped to his tie, yellow notepad pages lying on the podium, and a blurred red, white and blue backdrop behind him.
Jim Jordan, the new House Republican leader, pictured with no jacket, which this reporter reads as a lean balance sheet. Photo: Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America / CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

WASHINGTON — House Republicans elected Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio as their leader for the incoming Congress on Tuesday, CNBC reported, in a 106-73 closed-door vote over Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana, the current majority leader. I saw the number at 4 a.m. on my phone, from bed, and immediately went long brawling.

Some readers will point out that Jordan is being elected to lead the minority. Republicans are moving into that role after Democrats won big in last week’s midterm elections, according to CNBC. Those readers have never held a position through a 98 percent drawdown. I have. A minority is just a majority that is temporarily on sale.

The deal

The vote happened behind closed doors, which is my favorite kind of door. Jordan, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and a two-decade veteran of the chamber, is a close ally of President Donald Trump, CNBC reported. Outgoing House Speaker Mike Johnson said he would not seek the minority leader post, which left the race to Jordan and Scalise.

Scalise came in second with 73 votes. In my portfolio, second place with 73 of anything would be my best-performing asset by a wide margin.

The analyst note

“He’s the original congressional brawler and is exactly what our Conference needs to lead us back to the majority,” Rep. Brandon Gill of Texas said, according to CNBC.

I have read a lot of analyst notes. Most of them hedge. This one did not hedge once. “Original” means first mover. “Brawler” means volatility. “Back to the majority” is a price target. I put it on the fridge.

The fundamentals

The photo editor sent me a picture of Jordan at a podium with no suit jacket on, which I am told is how he prefers to work. That is a man who has cut overhead down to the shirt. No jacket means no jacket expenses, no dry cleaning, no hanger. I have not seen a balance sheet that lean since my own, and mine is lean because the exchange froze withdrawals.

I asked my podcast co-host for his outlook. My podcast co-host is me. He said the House majority traded down hard last week and nobody wants it right now, which is exactly when you buy. He also said he is long podiums, especially the clear ones, because you can see right through them, and that is what transparency looks like on a chart.

My position

The new Congress starts in January. Until then, Republicans have a leader, Democrats have the gavel coming, and the floor of the House has the same number of seats it always had.

My alarm is set for 4 a.m. When it goes off I will be long Jim Jordan, long the minority, long shirtsleeves and long any 106-73 vote held behind a closed door, because a closed door is a door with upside, and I have never once been wrong about a door.

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