Gaetz Files Motion to Vacate Against McCarthy

The spending resolution passed over the weekend seems to have been the final straw against Speaker Kevin McCarthy for Representative Matt Gaetz (R-FL). After threatening him several times, Rep. Gaetz has filed a motion to vacate the Speakership.

In the press release, Rep. Gaetz chastised Speaker McCarthy for having "been in breach of agreement" by not performing several demands by Republicans and conservatives. These include single-subject spending bills, releasing the January 6th tapes, not getting Democrat votes on legislation in line with the agenda of President Biden, and introducing votes on balancing the budget and term limits.

Additionally, whatever Speaker McCarthy has done, such as the vote on term limits in the House Judiciary Committee or some single-subject spending bills, Gaetz "forced him to do it."

"All of Speaker McCarthy’s failure theater resulted in him teaming up with Democrats to pass a continuing resolution that funds Ukraine, funds Jack Smith’s election interference against President Trump, abandons E-Verify, and does nothing to put the interests of the American people first," the press release concluded.

However, the resolution does not include funding for Ukraine as that will be subject to a later vote. Additionally, as Representative Byron Donalds (R-FL), who initially authored a continuing resolution pointed out, Jack Smith's investigation into Donald Trump would have already been exempt from a government shutdown anyway.

"Matt, tell the people the truth. The DOJ will operate whether the government is shut down or not. Special Counsel's [sic] have always exempted themselves from shutdowns. What's your plan to get the votes to defund Jack Smith? You'll need more than tweets and hot takes," Rep. Donalds tweeted at Gaetz in a heated online exchange in September.

Other House Republicans expressed disdain for Gaetz holding up the resolution process, with Representative Mike Lawler (R-NY) calling him a "charlatan" while Representative Carlos Gimenez (R-FL) called Gaetz "Biden's favorite Republican."

While Gaetz has been a ferocious critic of McCarthy since day one, calling him a "liar" and "lapdog" all the way back in December in an op-ed for the Daily Caller, is it possible Gaetz was pressured into filing the motion to vacate McCarthy himself?