MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
Congressman Jim Jordan is hoping to become House speaker when voting resumes today. Jordan's reputation as a firebrand is an asset to his supporters, but for his detractors, it is a liability. NPR's Sarah McCammon tells us more from Jordan's district in central Ohio.
SARAH MCCAMMON, BYLINE: When you ask about her Congressman, Jim Jordan, Linda Settlage (ph) doesn't hold back.
LINDA SETTLAGE: Don't like him at all. He doesn't do anything for us at all. He just yells and screams and causes trouble.
MCCAMMON: Settlage was enjoying breakfast at LuLu's Diner in Lima, Ohio, on Tuesday. She says Jordan should focus on improving health care and the economy at home. As a Democrat, Settlage is in the minority here. Jordan won reelection in 2022 with nearly 70% of the vote. Blake Kenner of nearby Bellefontaine can understand why Jordan enjoys that level of support.
BLAKE KENNER: I like him as a person. I know him. I've met him.
MCCAMMON: Kenner is a retired cop, now a school resource officer. When it comes to Jordan, there's one thing he can't get past, though.
KENNER: I think it kind of left a bad taste in my mouth on the January 6 incident.
MCCAMMON: Kenner was dining at Kewpee, a popular burger joint in Lima earlier this week. He says he's concerned about Jordan's involvement in the rally led by former President Donald Trump on January 6.
KENNER: That incident turned my stomach. I saw police officers trying to do their job and being fought by their own citizens. For anyone to support it is sickening.
MCCAMMON: Back at the diner, Russell Blue (ph), who lives in a rural area in Jordan's district, has no issue with his reputation as a right-wing rabble-rouser.
RUSSELL BLUE: Well, I think he's a bulldog. He's got some good ideas.
MCCAMMON: The bigger concern for Blue is the Republican Party's inability to come together.
BLUE: Why can't you guys agree at least once or twice? We don't have time for this.
MCCAMMON: As long as Republicans can't choose a speaker, Congress can't function, even as they face the looming prospect of a government shutdown in less than a month.
Sarah McCammon, NPR News, Lima, Ohio. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
