As the November general election looms, Republican hardliner Representative Matt Gaetz (R-FL) is putting stock behind primary challengers to the reelection campaigns of Representatives Mike Bost (R-IL) and Tony Gonzalez (R-TX). This puts him at odds with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), who demanded both sides "cool it."
Rep. Gaetz briefly appeared on CNN over the weekend, where he said, "I cannot save the country with the current Congress we have. We are going to need new members and better members."
Additionally, while he would "love nothing more than to just go after Democrats," he stipulated, "but if Republicans are going to dress up like Democrats in drag, I am going to go after them, too."
Moreover, Rep. Gaetz suggested, "We are not judged but how many Republicans we have in Congress, we are judged on whether or not we save the country."
NEW: "If Republicans are going to dress up like Democrats in drag, I'm gonna go after them, too." Rep. @mattgaetz tells @mkraju why he's picked @RepTonyGonzales as his next target in his quest to remake the House GOP. #InsidePolitics pic.twitter.com/mB2jXu16rK
— Inside Politics (@InsidePolitics) March 17, 2024
To this end, Gaetz has endorsed Darren Bailey, who ran against Governor J.B. Pritzker (D-IL) in the 2022 midterms for Governor of Illinois, in his bid to replace Rep. Bost. While Gaetz and Bailey claim Rep. Bost is an "establishment" Republican, Slate noted that policy-wise, the two are almost identical.
However, Gaetz's backing of Bailey is suggested to be out of a personal vendetta against Bost, who supposedly once "screamed" at the Florida Congressman during the fallout of Gaetz's successful ouster of Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA).
Similarly, Gaetz is backing firearms influencer Brandon Herrera against Rep. Gonzales in Texas, whom Gaetz claimed "votes with the uniparty and against the interests of the America First movement." Gaetz and Herrera cite Rep. Gonzales' support for some gun control measures and codification of same-sex marriage as reasons why.
Like during the McCarthy ouster, Gaetz is acting in defiance of GOP leadership, including Speaker Johnson.
"I’ve asked them all to cool it. I am vehemently opposed to member-on-member action in primaries because it’s not productive. And it causes division for obvious reasons, and we should not be engaging in that," Rep. Johnson told CNN during the House GOP retreat in West Virginia.
House Republicans hold a razor-thin majority over Democrats, fueling concerns that Gaetz's actions could cost them the House.
