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GOP House Leader Lays Out How Republicans Will Take Speaker's Gavel from Pelosi in 2020

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House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy likes the GOP’s chances of taking back the gavel from Speaker Nancy Pelosi in 2020, based on the districts in play.

The California congressman told Fox News on Monday the Republicans’ path to the majority in the House is easier than the Democrats’ was in 2018.

“Thirty-one Democrats sit in seats that President [Donald] Trump carried [in 2016],” he said on “America’s Newsroom.” “We only have to win 19. Democrats had to win 23 in the last cycle.

“We have fewer seats to gain with a bigger playing field to go.”

Pelosi enjoys a 235-197 lead in the House, with a majority of 218 Democrats needed to retain control.

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Watch McCarthy’s comments on the 2020 election starting at 4:20 below.

One of the races the minority leader highlighted as a possible GOP pickup is Texas’ 7th Congressional District in the Houston metropolitan area.

Republicans held the seat for decades prior to it flipping to Democratic Rep. Lizzie Fletcher in 2018.

Do you think the Republicans will take back the House in 2020? 

“Look at Wesley Hunt down in Houston, running for Congress,” McCarthy said. “A West Point graduate, flew Apaches. They just did a recent poll. He’s ahead in the poll running against the incumbent.”

The poll, which was paid for by the GOP Congressional Leadership Fund PAC, showed Hunt leading Fletcher 45 to 43 percent.

The Republicans also are hoping to take back Illinois’ 14th Congressional District, bordering Chicago.

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The seat had been in GOP hands for several terms and went for Trump in 2016 before flipping to Democratic Rep. Lauren Underwood in 2018.

Last month, Catalina Lauf, a 26-year-old former Trump administration official, announced her candidacy.

If the Latina Republican prevails in the primary and the general election, she would become the youngest women elected to Congress, surpassing the benchmark set by Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York in 2018.

The Cook Political Report currently rates Hunt’s race in the Texas 7th as “leans Democrat,” while the Illinois 14th contest is labeled a “toss-up.”

Overall, Cook sees 217 seats as either “solid” or “likely/lean” Democrat, while the GOP’s tally is 193 for the same. However, 18 seats currently held by Democrats are rated as “toss-up or worse,” while only six held by Republicans are.

Fox News anchor Bill Hemmer asked McCarthy whether GOP retirement announcements — 15 this election cycle so far, including five in the Lone Star State — threaten the Republicans’ chances of retaking the House in 2020.

“It is sad when someone wants to depart,” McCarthy responded. “I was very sad when Ted Poe departed in the last Congress. But who followed him? Dan Crenshaw.”

He added: “We have a transformation that’s happening in the Republican Party with new blood coming in that’s only going to make the team stronger, and I know that’s what’s going to carry us to the new majority.”

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Randy DeSoto has written more than 2,000 articles for The Western Journal since he joined the company in 2015. He is a graduate of West Point and Regent University School of Law. He is the author of the book "We Hold These Truths" and screenwriter of the political documentary "I Want Your Money."
Randy DeSoto is the senior staff writer for The Western Journal. He wrote and was the assistant producer of the documentary film "I Want Your Money" about the perils of Big Government, comparing the presidencies of Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama. Randy is the author of the book "We Hold These Truths," which addresses how leaders have appealed to beliefs found in the Declaration of Independence at defining moments in our nation's history. He has been published in several political sites and newspapers.

Randy graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a BS in political science and Regent University School of Law with a juris doctorate.
Birthplace
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Nationality
American
Honors/Awards
Graduated dean's list from West Point
Education
United States Military Academy at West Point, Regent University School of Law
Books Written
We Hold These Truths
Professional Memberships
Virginia and Pennsylvania state bars
Location
Phoenix, Arizona
Languages Spoken
English
Topics of Expertise
Politics, Entertainment, Faith




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