BREAKING: Kevin McCarthy Removed As Speaker

[Eupher]

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/spencerbrown/2023/10/03/vote-on-motion-to-vacate-mccarthy-as-speaker-n2629257

Now-former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was stripped of his gavel on Tuesday afternoon via roll-call vote on Rep. Matt Gaetz's (R-FL) motion to vacate the chair, pursuant to rules agreed to by McCarthy in order to clinch victory in his drawn-out race to become speaker in January.

By a vote of 216 to 210, the historic motion prevailed as presiding Rep. Steve Womack (R-AR) declared "the resolution is adopted...the office of Speaker of the House of the United States House of Representatives is hereby declared vacant."

The Republicans joining Gaetz in his motion to vacate were Reps. Biggs (AZ), Buck (CO), Burchett (TN), Crane (AZ), Good (VA), Mace (SC), Rosendale (MT)

Now, the House must return to the process that dragged on for five days in January through more than one dozen ballots as House Republicans struggled to elect a speaker — and it remains unclear who will emerge from the GOP conference to seek the now-vacated seat of the Speaker of the House or which members will remain in other House GOP leadership positions. For now, the only thing the House can work on is choosing its next speaker.

An hour of debate on Gaetz's motion to vacate saw the Florida Republican argue his case from the Democrat side of the House chamber, surrounded by the GOP's opposition with whom Gaetz worked to remove McCarthy as speaker, calling the speaker "chaos" despite the fact that Gaetz's motion to vacate has wrought a good measure of chaos itself.

Sounding quite like the Democrats surrounding him, Gaetz slammed the House GOP's oversight investigations as "failure theater."

Back on the pro-McCarthy GOP side of the chamber, House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan defended Speaker McCarthy. "He has kept his word, and I think we should keep him," Jordan said.

House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-NY) and others praised the speaker for being a "tireless" and "happy warrior."

Another House Republican, Garrett Graves (R-LA) called out Gaetz for using his campaign against McCarthy to boost his fundraising efforts.

Earlier on Tuesday, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) told House Democrats on to use their votes to clear any hurdles ahead of the motion to vacate question and then join insurgent House Republicans in their quest to boot McCarthy from leadership.

"We confront a serious, solemn and sober moment," Jeffries wrote in a "Dear Colleague" letter to House lawmakers. "The vote that the House will cast this week in connection with a Motion to Vacate the Chair is not about any one individual. Our responsibility as Members of Congress relates to the Constitution, the principle of good governance and the people we are privileged to serve," Jeffries added. "Nothing more, and nothing less."

"In that regard, House Democrats remain willing to find common ground on an enlightened path forward," Jeffries' letter continued. "Unfortunately, our extreme Republican colleagues have shown no willingness to do the same. It is now the responsibility of the GOP member to end the House Republican Civil War," wrote Jeffries. "Given their unwillingness to break from MAGA extremism in an authentic and comprehensive manner, House Democratic leadership will vote yes on the pending Republican Motion to Vacate the Chair."


Whatever one thinks of McCarthy or Gaetz, the scene that unfolded in the House chamber on Tuesday as a result of Gaetz's motion to vacate the chair handed a messaging and strategic win to Democrats by freezing the House's work toward responsibly funding the government and the vital progress being made by House committees in their work to hold the Biden administration accountable for its disastrous policies and to investigate the Biden family's businesses.

Gaetz may be feeling proud of himself, but there's little doubt that President Joe Biden, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and House Democrats are even more thrilled with his efforts.

This is a developing story and may be updated.

Spencer Brown, the writer of this piece, has irretrievably moved himself over to squish territory.

There used to be a thing called "integrity" and "doing what you say you're going to do" but that clearly doesn't apply to the 2nd Prince of Haircuts in Commiefornia, Kevin McCarthy.

I applaud this decision and even though there isn't a clearly-defined successor who has been lauded and brayed about so far, I'm quite confident that the Sewer that is Washington D.C. will dig up a Republican Representative who is more than willing to be sucked into the vacuum of power with the Speakership being vacated.

Hey, it's how the Swamp rolls. 

YMMV.

   

[Drafe Hoblin]

I'm not against the booting.

I'm wary of the upcoming 'meetings'.  Once upon a time I'd be tuning-into Rush tomorrow, to get a handle on who should be McCarthy's successor. 

As it is, Trump is the logical pick.

[Eupher]

NOTE: I'm deviating from the actual title of this piece, because the title isn't the main point.

Eupher's Title: McCarthy will not seek the Speakership in the Upcoming Election

It’s confirmed. Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), booted as the Speaker of the House of Representatives today, will not run again for his former office. The gavel will be passed onto someone who can obtain 218 votes at some point within the next few days without going multiple rounds with Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and his posse. Gaetz successfully filed a motion to vacate after McCarthy's allies failed to block the Florida Republican's ploy.

Gaetz was incensed that the recent spending bill passed on September 30, which averted a government shutdown, was agreed upon only after McCarthy promised a separate vote on a Ukraine aid package. There was no Ukraine aid in the stopgap measure, which led to the Senate dragging its feet for hours until Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO), of all people, withdrew his hold upon hearing news about a stand-alone vote for Ukraine funding. This whole drama seems to be more centered on Gaetz's personal animus toward McCarthy than honoring conservative action items and pledges.

There was a meeting among House Republicans at 6:30 p.m. this evening to discuss a course of action. McCarthy announced he would not "sell his soul to Democrats" when announcing he would take a step back. He vowed to work with most members of the caucus in helping them get re-elected next year.

The question now is who the new consensus nominee will be. Time is ticking because the House GOP is currently dealing with a Chernobyl-level political disaster, and the fallout could cost them the House. Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is set to speak at 7:30 p.m.

Lots of Twitter garbage in this scant piece. One person (I forget his name) tweeted that McCarthy said in his "meeting that "I won't sell my soul to the Democrats." That's bullshit, because he already did -- a number of times, mostly involving budgets and yet another CR.

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/mattvespa/2023/10/03/confirmed-kevin-mccarthy-wont-run-for-house-speaker-n2629300

The last paragraph in the piece is absolute bullshit No. 2. There is no "Chernoby-level political disaster" because there will always be some power-hungry politician more than willing to step into the power vacuum left by Representative Hairstyle. ALWAYS. It's why they became politicians to begin with. And no, it won't be Trump. He sees being Speaker as a step down from the presidency, and the only thing that appeals to his narcissistic mind is the top job.

[Eupher]

A No-Brainer Choice: Donald J. Trump For Speaker

Wow. That was fast. The House of Representatives for once heeded this commentator and dispatched the sad-sack Kevin “Fredo” McCarthy to the dustbin of congressional history.

Rich irony alert: The deed was accomplished with the help of the Democratic votes to which the ex-speaker had turned in betraying conservatives who had earlier this year acquiesced in allowing him to take up the gavel.

Now it’s time to turn to “Part II” (wink-wink) of the task: identifying and installing the “’to-the-mattresses’ leader willing to do what it takes to rescue America – that is, shut down the government until Congress achieves a reasonable degree of downsizing, defunding, de-weaponizing and defending the border and our security.”

As Republican Rep. Greg Steube of Florida suggested as this submission was being prepared for publication, who better than a proven get-it-done warrior who has set the standard for bucking conventional wisdom in taking on the Washington swamp (albeit somewhat selectively in the end) and the world?

Who has already led his party through two government shutdowns, one of them the longest in history, and hopefully learned some lessons from the experiences?

Who is, hands-down, the most popular figure in his party and owns – literally, in part – the biggest bully pulpit in politics?

Who, although he has a decidedly less than stellar record on fiscal issues, has been at the epicenter of the core issues involved in the previous speaker’s fall: the Wall, wokeness gone-wild, and above all, judicial weaponization?

And whose election would drive the opposition and its fellow travelers in the world of radical progressivism, already suffering from advanced derangement syndrome, completely out of its mind?

You already know whom of your correspondent speaks. And there is nothing – nix, nada, zero, zip – in the Constitution of the United States that prevents the former president of the United States, one Donald J. Trump, from ascending the podium to serve as the speaker of the United States House of Representatives.

Article I, Section II, Clause 5 states only: “The House of Representatives shall chuse their Speaker and other Officers … .” No mention whatsoever that said speaker must be a member.

Trump, with his appeal on various issues to the entire base, would be a candidate around whom the entire Republican Caucus could rapidly close ranks without the contentious, drawn-out drama that engulfed McCarthy’s selection at the beginning of the year.

And think of the delicious possibilities of how that choice could rapidly turn a host of situations on their heads.

Consider the prospect of The Donald, as head of the Capitol Police, suddenly in charge of all the video, all the records, all the exchanges, and all the personnel involved in the events of Jan. 6, 2021.

Cogitate on the Trump band, brought back together with a new mission, setting the agenda for what legislation would be brought to the House floor and when, and what committees might investigate and when.

Wrap your head around the “artist of the deal” sitting, in the place formerly occupied by Fredo McCarthy opposite Sleepy Joe, in face-to-face negotiations over a government shutdown.

And imagine, most delectably of all, the former reality show star positioned behind Biden, in rapid cognitive decline, during the nationally televised State of the Union address. Now there would be some “mug shots” to treasure.

On the flip side, would the weight and time demands of serial prosecutions be prohibitive in choosing this colossus of recent history for the large task of leading and mobilizing a slim majority?

One could argue just the opposite. The Justice Department would certainly face a massive dilemma in its twin harassments of the Usurper in Chief’s political nemesis #1. Would the White House’s stooges dare to continue their abuse of the courts against not just the leading presidential opposition candidate, but also the highest-ranking official in another branch of government? Continuation might well present separation-of-powers issues that could foment a constitutional crisis.

Also: would the runaway leader in Republican presidential polls be forced to abandon his campaign to return to 1600 Pennsylvania? If the most decrepit and pathetic nominee in history could successfully (with a large asterisk) run from his basement, why couldn’t a newly energized legislator do the same from one of the most visible positions in the Free (another asterisk) World? Setting the GOP’s legislative course could provide a head start in composing and promoting a reelection platform – and reboot those legendary mega-rallies with new urgency and interest.

And just maybe, The Donald would find his itch for authority sufficiently scratched by this powerful post, and cede the presidential race to a younger contender, relieving him of the daunting task of convincing a sufficient swath of the electorate to give him another shot at the top spot.

Turning now to address the gentleladies and gentlemen of the Republican Caucus of the 118th Congress: For all these reasons, it is an utter, absolute, total no-brainer to turn to the 45th president of the United States as the 56th Speaker.

As swiftly as a majority moved in in shipping the forlorn and soon-to-be-forgotten Fredo McCarthy back to the Left Coast, you should progress to drafting the most forceful figure of the current millennium to take his place.

Bob Maistros is a messaging and communications strategist, crisis specialist, and former political speechwriter. He can be reached at bob@rpmexecutive.com.

https://issuesinsights.com/2023/10/04/a-no-brainer-choice-donald-j-trump-for-speaker/


Maistros clearly is a Trump-bot (nothing wrong with that), but he's missing one very valuable point -- what makes him think Trump wants any other gig other than the presidency? Trump's far too narcissistic to aspire to a gig that isn't No. 1.

[Happy Fun Ball]

A bigger problem than that: I don't think you can be speaker of the house and president at the same time. If Trump does accept, then he can't be president, which means unless one of these other candidates like DeSantis or Haley can beat Biden, we will be stuck with him for another four years.

[Ralph Wiggum]

I can't tell what is more boring: This battle for the speakership or those persistent pending government shutdowns. Total snoozefest and inside D.C. bullshit.

Much to my amusement, I did notice that in every news story (other than conservative leaning ones) they always used the term "far-right" Republicans. Notice they never call anyone in the Democrat party "the far left".

[dutch508]

Nancy is being kicked out of the Speaker's Office.
Apparently, Kevin wasn't man enough to take it from her in January...

[Eupher]

Nancy is being kicked out of the Speaker's Office.
Apparently, Kevin wasn't man enough to take it from her in January...

Here's the story:

Nancy Pelosi Ordered to Vacate Her Office by New Acting Speaker, and the Tears Start Immediately

Kevin McCarthy is out as Speaker of the House. What that means going forward for Republicans isn't known yet, but there is some objectively good news that broke on Tuesday evening.

Following McCarthy's ouster, acting Speaker Patrick McHenry ordered Nancy Pelosi to leave the special hideaway office she didn't relinquish following her party's defeat in the 2022 mid-terms. The email notifying Pelosi's office of the order to get out got right to the point, noting that the office will be re-keyed if she doesn't leave.

As one of his first acts as the acting speaker, Rep. Patrick McHenry ordered former Speaker Nancy Pelosi to vacate her Capitol hideaway office by Wednesday, according to an email sent to her office viewed by POLITICO.

“Please vacate the space tomorrow, the room will be re-keyed,” wrote a top aide on the Republican-controlled House Administration Committee. The room was being reassigned by the acting speaker “for speaker office use,” the email said.

McHenry is a close ally of McCarthy, and this is almost certainly well-deserved retaliation. According to McCarthy, as part of the passage of the recent 45-day clean continuing resolution, Pelosi had promised to not support Gaetz if a motion to vacate was filed. Instead, the former Democrat Speaker stabbed now former Republican Speaker in the back and actually encouraged her caucus not to save McCarthy. In the end, Democrats joined with a small group of Republicans to end McCarthy's tenure.

I suppose the lesson is to not make deals with Nancy Pelosi, but what's done is done, and it's good to see McHenry striking back. Naturally, Pelosi cried and moaned about the decision.

The former speaker blasted the eviction in a statement as “a sharp departure from tradition,” adding that she had given former Speaker Dennis Hastert “a significantly larger suite of offices for as long as he wished” during her tenure.

Oh, it was a "sharp departure from tradition?" So was ousting a sitting Speaker, but Pelosi had no problem helping make that happen. Democrats play for keeps, and the only way to respond to their ruthlessness is with ruthlessness.

The band-aid was ripped off in a variety of ways with McCarthy's ouster. Going forward, there should be no presumption that the opposition party won't get involved in the majority's fight over who will be Speaker. Pelosi wanted to cause chaos and chaos she should receive. That starts with making her staffers haul her big screen TV and the rest of her belongings out of her prestigious office.

https://redstate.com/bonchie/2023/10/03/nancy-pelosi-ordered-out-of-her-office-by-new-acting-speaker-n2164656?bcid=d519b945f8a32ba161895b1c7231c16c5fa3cd48222b27fc1e013476354174f9

Nothing worse than a backstabber. F'n c**t needs to be thrown out of ALL her offices. She can conduct her business in the rotunda.

[Old n Grumpy]

Nothing worse than a backstabber. F'n c**t needs to be thrown out of ALL her offices. She can conduct her business in the basement

Fixed it 

[Drafe Hoblin]

Looks like Trump's gonna show-up at some of the meetings and basically pow-wow with some of the members about realigning the body to screw FJB and the democrats as cataclysmically as possible... using the powers that Majority has.

If Jim Jordan becomes the pick, fine.  Trump will either be on-hand or a phonecall away.

Scalise?  Nah...  Not persuasive.