Kevin McCarthy is still short of 218 votes and there appears to be a stalemate. NY Times has more:  

Representative Kevin McCarthy of California offered fresh concessions to a hard-right band of rebels in a desperate effort to lock down the votes to become speaker, as a historic Republican deadlock that has paralyzed Congress entered its third day on Thursday with no resolution. 

After losing a half-dozen consecutive votes for the post over two humiliating days, Mr. McCarthy privately agreed to more demands from the right-wing rebels that he had previously refused to countenance, including allowing a single lawmaker to force a snap vote at any time to oust him from the speakership, according to three people familiar with the negotiations who described them on the condition of anonymity, noting that they were ongoing and that no final deal had been reached. 

Plus, pro football player, Damar Hamlin, is making great progress. 

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Kevin McCarthy and Hakim Jefferies are still in the mix as the house goes into day 2 without appointing a speaker. New York Times reports:  

Representative Kevin McCarthy of California grasped on Wednesday for the votes he needs to become speaker after failing three times to win the post, as Republicans began their second day in control of the House without a leader and deadlocked about how to move forward amid a hard-right rebellion. 

Mr. McCarthy’s successive defeats on Tuesday marked the first time in a century that the House has failed to elect a speaker on the first roll call vote, and it was not clear how or when the stalemate would be resolved. After adjourning abruptly on Tuesday with no leader, the House was set to reconvene at noon on Wednesday to try to resolve the impasse. 

Also, more on the injury of pro football player Damar Hamlin. 

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U.S. Congressman Ralph Norman joins Vince to talk about McCarthy’s chances to be selected as new House Speaker. POLITICO reports:  

As Kevin McCarthy begins the final descent of his turbulent bid for the speaker’s gavel, Republicans are bracing to see whether he lands the plane or crashes and burns. 

After weeks of intense, down-to-the-wire negotiations, the California Republican is about out of time to lock down the needed 218 votes. With his yearslong effort to claim the speakership trapped in limbo, he’ll first meet with his party’s conference Tuesday morning behind closed doors, likely making his final case before members head to the House floor to vote. 

Early signs Tuesday didn’t point in his favor. Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) offered blistering criticism of McCarthy just hours before the vote, saying conservatives had asked for several concessions like commitments on committee seats that, in turn, would get him to 218 votes, but that the California Republican declined. 

Also, Transformation Tuesday. 

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A recent attack on NYC cops this weekend shows how crime has gotten out of control. NY Daily News has more:  

A young Maine man who recently became fixated with radical Islamic jihadism wounded two NYPD cops with a massive curved knife just outside the Times Square New Year’s Eve celebration, fracturing a rookie officer’s skull before being shot by police, law enforcement sources said Sunday. 

Cops and federal investigators are now taking a hard look at the internet history of the 19-year-old suspect, identified by sources as Trevor Bickford of Wells, Maine, to determine if terrorism motivated the bloody holiday attack, law enforcement sources said. 

“It’s being investigated as a terror attack, 100%,” one high-ranking NYPD official told the Daily News. “He radicalized about a month ago. He’s not affiliated with any group. It’s more like a lone-wolf situation.” 

Bickford expressed extremist beliefs on social media, the official said, adding, “He made threats that he was going to attack a public official.” 

Also, Vince talks about his recent trip to Seattle over the weekend.  

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Vince recaps the year of 2022 and looks forward to 2023. 

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Thousands of people were left at the terminal after Southwest Airlines canceled a massive number of flights. The New York Times reports:  

Five days after severe winter weather wreaked havoc on holiday air travel across the United States, most major carriers are back up and running. Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and United Airlines each canceled fewer than 40 flights on Wednesday, according to FlightAware, a flight tracking service. Delta had the fewest with only 15 cancellations. 

At Southwest, it was a very different story. 

More than 2,500 flights, or 62 percent of its planned flights on Wednesday, had been canceled, according to FlightAware. And Southwest said in a statement on Wednesday that it planned to fly one third of its scheduled flights for the next several days as it tries to return to normal operations, meaning it would continue to cancel close to 2,500 flights a day. Some passengers, unable to rebook Southwest flights, rented cars or spent hundreds of dollars to buy tickets on other airlines. 

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People across the country are prepping for cold temps as an arctic front sweeps across the US. The Guardian has more:  

Much of the US was braced on Wednesday for a dangerous mix of sub-zero temperatures, howling winds and blizzard conditions expected to disrupt plans for millions of holiday travelers. 

The frigid weather began hammering the Pacific north-west on Tuesday and was expected to move to the northern Rockies, then grip the Plains in a deep freeze and blanket the Midwest with heavy snowfall, forecasters said. The Arctic front was forecast to spread bone-chilling cold as far south as Florida by Friday. 

Authorities worried about power outages warned people to take precautions to protect the elderly, the homeless and livestock – and, if possible, to postpone travel. 

The Senate passes a $1.7 trillion Omnibus spending bill. The Hill reports:  

The Senate on Thursday voted to pass a $1.7 trillion omnibus package that funds the federal government through September, provides Ukraine with $45 billion in military and economic aid and sets aside $38 billion for emergency disaster assistance. 

It also includes reforms to the Electoral Count Act in response to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, clarifying that the vice president does not have the power to overturn the results of a presidential election. 

Also, Faith Focus Friday.

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The Omnibus bill is on hold. The Wall Street Journal has more:  

Senate Democratic leaders hope to break an impasse Thursday morning over a sprawling spending bill that has put the federal government on the precipice of a partial shutdown just before the Christmas holiday. 

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) closed Wednesday’s legislative day without an agreement on the terms for cutting off debate and proceeding to a vote on a $1.65 trillion government funding bill for fiscal 2023. The bill, which would keep the government funded beyond Dec. 23, also carries $45 billion in aid for Ukraine and NATO allies, and would finance big increases in military and domestic spending, including military pay raises. 

“It is my expectation that we will be able to lock in an agreement on the omnibus tomorrow morning,” Mr. Schumer said around 2 a.m. Thursday. “We are very close but we’re not there yet.” 

Also, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenski visits the White House.

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The latest on Title 42 via The Hill:  

The Biden administration on Tuesday asked Chief Justice John Roberts to rule against 19 GOP-led states that initiated court action to keep the controversial Title 42 policy in place. 

The administration was responding to Roberts’s administrative stay from Monday in which he temporarily halted the end of the policy, set to end Wednesday. 

Title 42 has taken center stage in the political debate over immigration and border policy. 

Most Republicans and some Democrats say it is essential to border control, while immigration advocates and most Democrats oppose Title 42 mainly because it undermines the asylum system. 

Also, Pastor David Chadwick from Moments of Hope Church, joins the program.  

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Title 42 extended... for now. The Hill has more:  

The Supreme Court on Monday temporarily halted the expiration of Title 42, a Trump-era immigration policy that allows border officials to turn away asylum-seekers due to concerns about public health.  

Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts granted an administrative stay to temporarily pause the rollback, keeping Title 42 active past the initial expiration date of Dec. 21, pending another order from the Court.   

A federal judge had struck the immigration policy down last month and set it on the path toward expiration, but a group of 19 GOP state attorneys general asked the Supreme Court to let Title 42 stand as states grapple with immigration at the U.S.-Mexico border. 

Also, Kari Lake working to have a new election in Arizona. 

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