McCarthy: Scalise has 'big hill' to climb, doesn’t have votes to become speaker

Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said on Thursday that House Majority Leader Steve Scalise has a "big hill" to climb to win speakership on House floor whenever the vote takes place because he currently lacks the 217 votes needed to win. 

"It's possible but it's a big hill," he told reporters at the U.S. Capitol.

It remains unclear when the House floor vote for speaker will occur. 

McCarthy said Scalise told lawmakers that “he would be at 150 and he wasn’t there." He wound up receiving 113 votes among the House GOP conference while Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, secured 99. Scalise needs a simple majority to become speaker on the House floor.

More than 10 GOP lawmakers have said they plan to vote for Jordan over Scalise when the floor vote happens.