House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was confident today of his chances of holding the gavel despite efforts to oust him by fellow Republican Matt Gaetz – while Democrats said they would not hand McCarthy a lifeline to keep him in power.
“At the end of the day, if you throw out the speaker who has 99% of their conference, who keeps the government open, who pays the military, I think we’re in a very bad place for how we’re going to compete. Congress,” McCarthy (R-Calif.) told reporters ahead of an afternoon vote on a motion to vacate introduced Monday evening by Gaetz (R-Fla.).
While nothing is final until the vote is taken, reports indicate that a handful of Republicans will join all House Democrats in supporting Gaetz’s motion — meaning McCarthy would become the first speaker to be ousted through parliamentary procedure and begin what could be a long round of voting to find a replacement. .
“If five Republicans go with the Democrats, I’m out,” McCarthy added, before predicting: “I’m confident I’ll survive.”
Democrats emerged from a caucus meeting Tuesday morning seemingly united in their determination not to bail out the Californian, who liberal lawmakers say has made too many concessions to the most senior members of his conference.
“We encourage our fellow Republicans who claim to be more traditional to break away from the extremists, end the chaos, end the dysfunction, end the extremism,” Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) told reporters. “We are ready, willing and able to work with our fellow Republicans, but it’s up to them to join us in moving Congress and the country forward.”
“It’s pretty clear that the Democratic caucus doesn’t feel that Kevin McCarthy is a credible leader,” Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) said after the meeting, summing up the feelings of many of his colleagues.
? LATEST NEWS — @RepJeffries “finally” requests a vote on any procedural motion to postpone a motion to vacate
AND he said Democrats should vote to oust McCarthy.
— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) October 3, 2023
Even moderate Democrats like Rep. Jared Golden of Maine turned his back on McCarthy, with the New Englander saying he saw “no reason” to keep the Republican in the leadership position.
“Even if Kevin McCarthy says he’s going to do something, there’s not a lot of faith that he’s going to follow through on anything he does,” added Rep. Dan Kildee (D-Mich.). “Just based on his history, it’s very hard to imagine taking what Kevin McCarthy said at face value.”
“Our job is not to elect a Republican speaker,” Congressional Progressive Caucus chair Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) told Fox News. “It is to elect a Democratic speaker.”
Kevin McCarthy acknowledged the bleak picture, but hoped he would survive. SHAWN THEW/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
The actual vote on Gaetz’s motion would be preceded by a vote on the motion to table, which would kill the effort to oust McCarthy if successful.
If McCarthy is voted out, all House business will stop until a new speaker is voted on. In January, it took four days and 15 votes for him to win the gavel.
“There was a time when I would be the speaker and I couldn’t — you guys counted me out. I’m the speaker… you’re convinced the government is going to shut down, you’re convinced the debt ceiling isn’t going to get done,” McCarthy said Tuesday.
Hakeem Jeffries doubts whether Democrats will give Kevin McCarthy a lifeline.Getty Images
“But every time, if there is an obstacle, I see it as a challenge and we will solve the challenge,” he added.
The Speaker also refused to make any concessions to the Democrats to ensure that he would continue in office on Tuesday evening.
“That didn’t work,” McCarthy told reporters. “We are in the majority. You don’t give up. Do you work with other parties? Yes, that is what I have done.”
Matt Gaetz is pushing to oust Kevin McCarthy following a spending spree that is preventing a government shutdown. REUTERSKevin McCarthy survived an unprecedented 15 votes to win the gavel in January. Reuters
“[Democrats] not asking for anything. I’m not going to give anything away,” McCarthy told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” Tuesday morning.
As the House grapples with an insurgent effort to oust McCarthy, a handful of Democrats are expected to leave Washington to attend the funeral of Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) later this week.
That could theoretically give McCarthy more breathing room if he pushes a final vote on the motion to Wednesday afternoon, the latest it can happen under House rules.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
