NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — House Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Metairie has put his bid in to be the next Speaker of the House. In a two-page letter, he says the goal is to get the Republican agenda back on track.

“I know we have a lot of work to do. I want to help us stay focused and get the job done for the American people,” says Scalise.

“Everyone that knows Steve Scalise knows that he is a hard worker,” says political analyst Jeff Crouere.

Being the No. 2 House Republican already, Crouere says he is confident Scalise would be a great leader and bring unity to the house.

“He is going to attack these issues and try to bring some consensus together. Some intimately know the problems in the country and work with people from across the aisle,” says Crouere.

Others believe it’s too early to crown Scalise as the next speaker.

“We don’t know if he would get it, no one currently will have the 218 votes necessary to secure the position. You have a lot of names but this is completely uncharted territory,” says political analyst Silas Lee.

With the threat of a government shutdown next month, political analysts are curious to see what the next move will be.

“They have got to come together and put a budget together to deal with different things within the Republican party,” says Crouere.

Another topic the next speaker may have to tackle is what to do about the “motion to vacate.” That was used to force former Speaker Kevin McCarthy out.

Lee says the use of that motion may set a dangerous precedent, “whereby a small number of vocal opponents will bring an initiative to oust the leadership. You don’t need this political drama.”

Republicans have set an Oct. 11 vote to choose a successor and are due to meet the day before to hear from candidates.

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