Kevin McCarthy Faces Recall Vote from Far-Right Republicans, a First in 113 Years: ‘Bring It On’

Kevin McCarthy’s reign as Speaker of the House of Representatives is in jeopardy as far-right members of the Republican Party seek to oust him from the nation’s third-highest office.

The “eviction motion” — which automatically triggers an impeachment vote against McCarthy — was filed Monday by House Freedom Caucus member Matt Gaetz, marking the first official attempt to remove a House speaker in 113 years.

“I have enough Republicans where at this point next week one of two things is going to happen: Kevin McCarthy is not going to be Speaker of the House or he’s going to be Speaker of the House doing the will of the Democrats,” Gaetz told reporters after the filing, according to the Associated Press.” I’m comfortable with any outcome because the American people deserve to know who’s running them.”

“Go on,” McCarthy wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, shortly after Gaetz’s application. Gaetz then reposted McCarthy’s message, adding“I just did.”

Stripping McCarthy of his leadership position requires only a simple majority in the House of Representatives, effectively placing his fate in the hands of the Democrats.

Far-right Republicans, in a bit of rage over Kevin McCarthy, join Democrats in blocking 2 GOP bills

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy sits next to Vice President Kamala Harris as President Joe Biden delivers the State of the Union address on February 7, 2023. Drew Angerer/Getty

McCarthy’s potential ouster comes as the splintered House Republican Party continues to clash over spending bills – an infighting that has been going on for months and nearly resulted in a government shutdown over the weekend.

“I think we have to rip off the Band-Aid. I think we have to continue with new leadership that can be trusted,” Gaetz, one of McCarthy’s most vocal critics, said Sunday on CNN State of the Union. “Look, one thing everyone has in common is that nobody trusts Kevin McCarthy. He lied to Biden. He lied to conservatives in the House.”

Gaetz continued, “Kevin McCarthy’s goal was to make more contradictory promises to delay everything against the shutdown policy and at the end of the day to jump the spending limits he agreed to.”

Lauren Boebert suggests that God used her to oppose Kevin McCarthy’s bid for the presidency

While Democrats share little in common with the House Freedom Caucus — the farthest right-wing voting bloc in Congress — many agreed that McCarthy’s inability to unite Republicans created unnecessary obstacles in the House.

Democrats also expressed frustration that McCarthy, allegedly under pressure from Donald Trump, launched an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden without enough evidence — and while the government was on the brink of a shutdown.

Progressive New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told CNN on Sunday that she would “absolutely” vote to oust McCarthy.

On first day of impeachment inquiry, Republican witness says ‘current evidence’ does not support impeachment

Kevin McCarthy rallies with Republicans during the deadlocked House Speaker race in January 2023. Beat McNamee/Getty

McCarthy himself is largely to blame for the current impeachment attempt.

When Republicans regained their majority in the House of Representatives in January, the party immediately split over who to choose as Speaker of the House. The leader of the majority party – in this case, McCarthy – is generally easily elected, but members of the far right refused to support him, resulting in the first deadlocked House Speaker election in a century.

Kevin McCarthy caught in the most contested election for Speaker of the House of Representatives since 1859.

Rather than step down and make way for a more unifying Republican leader to take the role, McCarthy insisted on becoming speaker and began making concessions to right-wing opponents to gain their support.

By the time he secured the necessary votes to become president – which required a historic four days and 15 rounds of voting – he had ceded much of his power by promising Republicans they could oust him at any time if they were unhappy with his leadership.

Republicans in the Senate criticize the Republican party’s investigation into the impeachment of Biden: ‘It cannot become routine’

Kevin McCarthy during the contested four-day election for speaker of the House of Representatives in January 2023. Anna Moneymaker/Getty

A new House speaker will be elected if Republican insurgents succeed in ousting McCarthy, but there is no clear successor yet.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise — who is more conservative than McCarthy — would be an obvious replacement as the House Republican No. 2, although his current treatment for blood cancer would potentially prevent him from jumping in right away.

Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education