🥊 Axios PM: Jim Jordan's backfire

Plus: White House-Israel scoop | Tuesday, October 17, 2023

Open in app View in browser   Presented By Google   Axios PM By Mike Allen · Oct 17, 2023 Good Tuesday afternoon. Today's PM — edited by Noah Bressner — is 584 words, a 2-min. read. Thanks to Sheryl Miller for the copy edit. 🚨 Situational awareness: Hundreds of people were killed after a blast at a hospital in Gaza today, according to Palestinian officials. The Israeli military denied involvement and blamed a misfired Palestinian rocket. Hamas said it was an Israeli strike. Keep reading.     1 big thing: Jim Jordan's backfire Rep. Jim Jordan talks with staff and fellow lawmakers in the House chamber today. Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images GOP speaker nominee Rep. Jim Jordan's pressure campaign is backfiring in real time. Why it matters: Many of Jordan's foes in the Republican caucus are digging in after his effort to gather enough support to become speaker failed in the first ballot this afternoon. The 20 Republicans voting against Jordan matched the worst ballot for former Speaker Kevin McCarthy during his marathon speaker election in January, Axios' Juliegrace Brufke writes. Jordan's team wants to hold another ballot today. Data: C-SPAN. Chart: Jacque Schrag/Axios Zoom in: A group of GOP pragmatists and institutionalists cited concerns over Jordan's ties to former President Trump, Jan. 6 and the Freedom Caucus, his fundraising abilities, and his alleged bullying tactics. Many lawmakers who voted against Jordan are moderates from swing districts and could be seriously hurt by his brand. Others are allies of McCarthy and Majority Leader Steve Scalise, who are aggrieved at the events of recent weeks. State of play: Some of Jordan's detractors signaled flexibility and previewed plans to talk with him before the next vote. But others suggested they are firmly against him, Axios' Andrew Solender writes. "The millisecond anybody tries to intimidate me is the moment I no longer have flexibility," said Rep. Mario Díaz-Balart (R-Fla.), who voted for Scalise. "I have no intention of moving." Go deeper: Share this story ... What to know about Jordan ... Meet the GOP holdouts.     2. ⚡ Scoop: White House weighs military response to Hezbollah Map: Axios Visuals The White House has been discussing the possibility of using military force if Hezbollah joins the war in Gaza and attacks Israel with its huge arsenal of rockets, U.S. and Israeli officials tell Axios' Barak Ravid. Why it matters: Lebanon-based Hezbollah joining the war would dramatically escalate the Middle East's worst conflict in decades. Two U.S. officials said Secretary of State Tony Blinken told Arab leaders in the region that the U.S. "is not fooling around" by sending so many military assets to support Israel. The officials stressed that the administration is doing all it can to keep Hezbollah out of the war. But it's preparing for the opposite scenario. Since the Gaza war began, tensions between Israel and Hezbollah have increased, with daily skirmishes between the parties along the Israel-Lebanon border. Keep reading.     A message from Google Goodcall is answering the needs of small businesses with Google's AI     Many small businesses are short-staffed and have to compromise between monitoring their phones and serving their current customers. Goodcall leverages the conversational AI services of Google Cloud to offer them an affordable alternative: virtual call agents. Learn more.     3. Catch me up Photo: Seth Wenig/AP 🏛️ Former President Trump returned to a Manhattan courthouse for his New York civil fraud trial, marking his fourth appearance at the proceeding in less than a month. More from Axios' Erin Doherty. 🇨🇳 The Biden administration is tightening its restrictions on the export of artificial intelligence chips and manufacturing equipment to China, Axios' Hans Nichols writes. ⚖️ New Mexico prosecutors say they are seeking to recharge actor Alec Baldwin with involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer two years ago. Go deeper.     4. 🎨 View from the courtroom Caroline Ellison, a key witness, testifying in federal court last week. Drawing: Brady Dale/Axios No photos are allowed at the federal court where former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried is being tried in New York. So Axios Crypto co-author Brady Dale has taken up a new hobby: courtroom sketch artist. Nishad Singh, FTX's former engineering director, testifying while Sam Bankman-Fried (center) listens. Drawing: Brady Dale/Axios Brady and his colleague Crystal Kim have spent the last two weeks reporting from the courtroom in lower Manhattan. Get Axios Crypto for the latest on the trial.     A message from Google Improving agriculture sustainability with Google AI     State governments, academic institutions and local communities in India are working with Google AI-powered landscape-monitoring technologies to map out a more sustainable future for the country's food supply. Learn how Google AI enables sustainable farming practices.   📬 Thanks for reading. Please invite your friends to join. Are you a fan of this email format? Your essential communications — to staff, clients and other stakeholders — can have the same style. Axios HQ, a powerful platform, will help you do it.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. Axios, 3100 Clarendon B‌lvd, Arlington VA 22201   You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from Axios. To stop receiving this newsletter, unsubscribe or manage your email preferences.   Was this email forwarded to you? 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