Former US President Donald Trump said that he is ready to become a temporary House speaker for a short period of time until the Republicans decide on the permanent candidate.
"They have asked me if I would take it for a short period of time for the party until they come to a conclusion - I’m not doing it because I want to - I will do it if necessary, should they not be able to make their decision," Trump told media on Thursday.
Trump added that he has been asked to serve as a "unifier" for his party because he has "so many" friends in Congress.
On October 3, US Representative Republican Kevin McCarthy was removed as speaker of the US House of Representatives after a vote of 216 to 210. It was the first time in 113 years that the lower chamber had voted to remove the speaker, and the first time ever that it succeeded.
The vote to oust McCarthy was initiated by fellow Republican Matt Gaetz, who said that "[...] no one trusts him [McCarthy]." The reason was ideological differences between the politicians: the Republicans did not forgive the speaker for compromising with the Democrats on the budget.
The position is temporarily occupied by US Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC).