Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., holds a news conference at the US Capitol on border security, government funding, and other issues, on Friday, September 29, 2023.
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Republican Rep. said. Florida’s Matt Gaetz said Sunday that he intends to file a motion to compel House Speaker Kevin McCarthy this week.
In an interview with Jake Tapper on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Gaetz said, “When you host this show next week, if Kevin McCarthy is still the speaker of the House, he will be serving on Democrats’ pleasure.”
The declaration from Gaetz came less than a day after Congress passed the 45-day stopgap spending bill with 335 votes in favor, 209 from Democrats and 126 from Republicans. The bill was passed hours before a government shutdown deadline.
McCarthy negotiated a deal with Democrats after struggling to rally the necessary votes from his fellow Republicans.
That decision is already generating political opposition from House Republicans like Gaetz who have threatened to oust him as speaker if he works with Democrats to get a deal done.
Gaetz needed 218 votes to pass a motion to vacate McCarthy.
WASHINGTON, DC – SEPTEMBER 30: House Freedom Caucus member Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) for a Republican House caucus meeting on September 30, 2023 in Washington, DC. The government is expected to shut down at midnight if the House cannot reach a last-minute budget deal on Saturday. (Photo by Nathan Howard/Getty Images)
Nathan Howard | Getty Images News | Getty Images
“I have the necessary number of House Republicans, a sufficient number, to ensure that we no longer own Kevin McCarthy. By the end of the week, he will no longer be speaker or he will be speaker serving at the pleasure of the Democrats, ” he says. Gaetz.
However, McCarthy may not find a safety net among Democrats.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Sunday said she “absolutely” voted to oust McCarthy.
“I think Kevin McCarthy is a very poor speaker. He has clearly lost control of his caucus. He has brought the United States and millions of Americans to the brink of waiting until the last hour to keep the government open and even just issuing a 45-day extension so we’ll be right back in this place in November,” Ocasio-Cortez said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
He went on to say that if McCarthy wants to lean on the Democrats to save his job, he has to make a deal: “Unless Kevin McCarthy asks for a vote, again, I don’t think we’re giving something away.” For free.”
