Tom Cole eyed as potential House Speaker

With the Republican Party in turmoil over who will become the next House Speaker, Indigenous Congressman Tom Cole of Oklahoma is being eyed as a possible compromise candidate.

It is the second time that Cole, Chickasaw, has been considered a contender for the speaker’s position. He was also questioned in 2015 about the speakership but stated at the time he had no interest in the position.

Now Cole, the longest-serving Indigenous member of Congress, is set to begin his 20th year in the U.S. House in January after easily winning re-election to Oklahoma’s 4th Congressional District.

He could not be reached for comment by ICT about the latest speakership, but his name surfaces repeatedly in speculation about who might lead the GOP if Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy cannot drum up the necessary votes to advance.

“Tom Cole has checked all the boxes,” said Mike Stopp, a Republican political consultant. “He has been the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, which is the political arm of the House members. He knows how to raise money and he knows how to get Republicans elected.

“He’s the ranking member on two of the most important committees in the House, which are the Appropriations Committee and the Rules Committee.”

If elected House Speaker, Cole would become the highest-ranking Indigenous federal official in the country, third in line to the presidency and the first Indigenous person elected to that position.

Cole hasn’t built his career focused on federal Indian policy, but he provides important insights to his colleagues on issues around tribal sovereignty and the federal government’s treaty obligations to tribal nations.

His office signed onto a friend-of-the-court brief in the Brackeen v Haaland case in support of the Indian Child Welfare Act and last year he introduced the Cherokee Nation and Chickasaw Nation Criminal Jurisdiction Compacting Act in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s McGirt decision. Cole is also co-chair of the Congressional Native American Caucus.

“It’d be great to have an American Indian who grew up in rural Oklahoma understanding Indian issues to have that kind of power, and to sit at that position,” said Stopp, Cherokee. “Not only as a person for young American Indians to look up to and try to emulate, but as far as policy goes, he is the longest-serving member of Congress who’s an American Indian. He has a very specific understanding of Indian policy at the federal level.”

Familiar territory

Cole’s name is among a string of possible contenders as McCarthy, now the minority leader, remains on the hunt to secure the necessary 218 votes to become House Speaker.

The Republican party gained a small number of seats in the midterm elections in November, fewer than expected but enough to take the majority. Despite being expected to garner over 20 seats, however, the party was able to gain only nine. That means that if just four Republicans refuse to vote for McCarthy he would not ascend to Speaker of the House.

Currently, five have stated publicly that they would not be voting for McCarthy. It is speculated that two of them would never vote for McCarthy, although the five opposition members have stated they would be voting as a block.

It’s familiar territory for McCarthy. In 2015, McCarthy was unable to secure enough votes to win the speakership and Paul Ryan became the compromise candidate. Ryan served as speaker from 2015 to 2019.

But McCarthy has been working to build support, and 54 representatives have “Kevin Only” statements endorsing him. Some stated they would only vote for McCarthy until he is elected.

Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs, who is among the five Republicans opposing McCarthy, has officially announced he is running for speaker.

Other names that have surfaced if McCarthy fails to garner enough votes include House Minority Whip Steve Scalise, and Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, though Jordan has said he’d rather chair the judiciary committee.

Potential historic moment

If Cole were to be elected as speaker, it would be a historic and monumental moment for the nation and for Indigenous people.

“He’s very well known, especially to Indian Country,” Stopp said. “He is the longest-serving Native American member of Congress in U.S. history. Both sides of the aisle turn to him for issues on Indian Country and how to vote. He’s absolutely a prime candidate for speaker.”

Cole has expressed no interest in the position, however, and three emails to the congressman’s press team asking if Cole’s interest in the speakership has changed in recent years went unanswered.

“Tom Cole, regardless of where he is in the leadership structure, is super important, especially today,” Stopp said. “We have some big issues facing Indian Country. A couple of weeks ago, Cherokee Nation had the opportunity to give a presentation in a hearing before the Rules Committee in which Tom Cole was the ranking member, where they were trying to push the delegate idea coming from their treaties in the 1800s. And Tom Cole is very open to that.”

Over the next year, Cole’s leadership will become ever more important as the U.S. Supreme Court weighs an important case that directly challenges tribal sovereignty. The current makeup of the court hasn’t been favorable to Indian Country in the past few years, making it difficult to gauge how the justices will rule on Brackeen v. Haaland sometime next spring.

“We need someone like Tom Cole who understands those issues and can help address it from the congressional position, because there are a lot of things facing Indian Country right now that need someone like Tom Cole in place,” Stopp said.