Republican South Carolina Rep. Trey Gowdy
For a guy whose colleagues supposedly wanted him to serve as their No. 2 leader, GOP Rep. Trey Gowdy sure is lousy at basic communication. Gowdy has been playing the role of the tea party's Inspector Javert as chief inquisitor on the seemingly permanent Benghazi committee.
He saw his name floated for the position of House majority leader, a spot that will almost certainly come open when the current occupant, Kevin McCarthy, becomes speaker following John Boehner's resignation.
But it wasn't until late in the day that Gowdy awkwardly semi-disavowed his interest, saying, "I've never run for any leadership position, and I'm not going to start now. Don't know how I can be any more definitive." Here's how: Just say "I'm not running." As Politico put it, the Gowdy chatter "confused and consumed the Capitol," and even now, the site notes, he could still be the subject of a draft effort and even receive votes for the position, whether he's formally seeking it or not. (Supposedly, even John Boehner tried to recruit him.)
Then things got even weirder. Rep. John Fleming, the Louisiana Republican best known for thinking The Onion's "Abortionplex" was a real thing, helpfully announced to the world that Gowdy "wants to go back to South Carolina" and would not seek re-election next year. In response, Gowdy's office issued a non-denial, saying only, "He has not made any announcement about 2016."
GOP Rep. Mick Mulvaney, a fellow South Carolinian who calls himself Gowdy's "best friend," followed that up with a tweet-storm insisting that Gowdy would indeed run for a fourth term—even though, Mulvaney previously claimed, he "had to beg Trey to run for re-election in 2014." It's entirely unclear why Gowdy couldn't speak for himself, or why Mulvaney felt he had to strain so hard on his buddy's behalf. Fleming then apologized for talking out of turn—but why Fleming imagined that Gowdy wanted him of all people to serve as his unsought tribune is likewise a mystery (though see: Abortionplex).
Finally, Gowdy did speak up on his own behalf and cleared everything up. Hah! Just kidding. He did no such thing. All Gowdy would say was that he has "every intention" of running again. Once again, all he has to do here is say, "I'm running" or "I'm not running." But once again, he's refusing to do so. It's hard to figure out why he's being such a squirrely bastard, unless maybe he thinks his Benghazi "investigation" will last until 2017 and he wants to give himself the freedom to stick around until the bitter end.
Roll Call also speculates that Gowdy, a former prosecutor, would love an appointment to a federal judgeship. That can only happen if a Republican wins the White House next year, but if Gowdy wants to hedge his bets, he could win another term next year (a gimme in his safely red South Carolina district), then resign from the House if he gets tapped for a spot on the bench. He doesn't need to play these games, so whatever his motivation, he's acting like a serious pain in the ass.