The US Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy has been removed after a right-wing revolt, which has become the first time removal of a House Speaker in the US History in a no-confidence vote. Californian Congressman, leader of the Republican majority, was removed from the lower chamber of Congress by 216-210 votes. The move against McCarthy was filed after he passed a deal with the White House, after which the House would fund the government agencies to avert the shutdown. Florida Republican Matt Gaetz filed the move on Monday to oust the Speaker, which went successful after voting, and Republican McCarthy was dismissed from his seat.
This procedural tool to remove the House Speaker went successful for the first time in American history. Gaetz accused the Speaker of making a hidden deal with the White House to continue making the legislation to continue Ukraine’s funds, but McCarthy denied that blame. On Saturday, the House succeeded in making a deal to avoid a government shutdown, but it cut the Ukrainian military aid as many Republicans were opposing the funding, saying the United States has already provided exceptional funds to Kyiv to fight its war.
Kevin McCarthy Decided Not To Run Again
In a private meeting with his Republican fellows after losing his job, McCarthy described he had no plans to run again for the speaker-ship. Later, he argued that Mr. Gaetz had done all that to seek the attention, and it was personal, and it had nothing to do with the funds. The former Speaker said the hardliners who voted for his dismissal were not the conservatives. McCarthy became the Speaker of the House in January. Gaetz and some other members refused to support McCarthy, but even he won the 15 rounds of voting in the chamber.
The former Speaker still grabbed 210 votes in his favor, and only eight Republican members voted to oust him. Democrats joined the Republicans to remove the Speaker. There was only a single vote that surprised McCarthy: the most moderate Republican, Nancy Mace. After voting to oust McCarty, she expressed that they wanted a Speaker who would speak the truth to the American People and be trustworthy and honest to the Congress. Hakeem Jeffries, Democrats House leader, said in a letter to colleagues that he would not provide the votes required to save McCarthy.
Source: Web
Speaker Helped The Government And Lost His Job
The dismissal of McCarthy has created chaos in the House of Representatives, and the House will need to elect some other candidate for the Speaker’s seat, and there is no clear alternative to McCarthy who would get the required votes. However, the process is underway. There are also challenges for Republicans as McCarthy has announced not to go for rerun. The former Speaker said in a media talk on Tuesday after losing his job that he did not regret what he had done. He added it was his responsibility, and he did his job, and the government was designed to make negotiations.
Many Republicans are now considering running for the Speaker seat, but it is challenging for the GOP as they do not have a plan or stand unified behind a single candidate. Sources claim that Steve Scalise, House Majority Leader who is the No. 2 Republican, has started working out and reaching out to members for a potential speakership run. After the removal of McCarthy, GOP Rep. Patrick McHenry was named an interim speaker, and the House went on a brake until a path forward.
Furthermore, no House sessions are expected the whole week, and Republicans may hold a speaker candidate forum in a week. McCarthy ally and House Rules Chairman Tom Cole said no one knows what happens next. He added that even the people who voted for oust have no idea and have no plan next except voting for chaos.
