★ In this story 03
The vote was close – 216-210. Every Democrat voted to vacate, and eight Republicans joined them. It’s worth looking now at the individual perspectives of those involved.
McCarthy Not Bowed
In a Q and A session with reporters after the vote, McCarthy showed some irritation toward Republican lawmaker Matt Gaetz (FL) who was the mastermind behind this ousting. McCarthy said of him and his seven colleagues:
“They don’t get to say they’re conservative because they’re angry and they’re chaotic. That’s not the party … They are not conservatives, and they do not have the right to have the title.”
But fellow Republicans were not the only ones whom McCarthy blamed. He said of House Democrats that “They played so many politics.”
The Republicans
While speaking with Fox News’ Laura Ingraham after the vote, Rep. Gaetz argued that the House should get on with electing a new speaker and that the “yellow brick road of working with Democrats was paved by Kevin McCarthy.”
North Carolina Rep. Patrick McHenry (R) has assumed the role of House speaker pro tempore and will oversee the election of a new leader. He was appointed to this temporary position due to a little-known rule that allows the speaker to provide a list of “alternates” to step in if needed; McHenry was top of that list. Two of his first official acts in his temporary role were to tell Pelosi to leave her plush offices and to send lawmakers home for a week.
The Motion to Vacate was brought by Gaetz in response to a 45-day stopgap measure that passed in the House on September 29 in place of a full year of funding for the federal government. Gaetz argued that this was carried thanks to Democrats, whom the measure benefited – a suggestion bolstered by the fact that 91 Republicans voted against it, and seven did not vote. All but three Democrats voted for it.
The most prominent name being floated for replacement speaker is House Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana, a man widely respected by much of his party, and, most importantly, also a leader who is considered acceptable by the eight Republicans who voted to ditch McCarthy.
The Democrat Caucus
Before the vote happened, Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-MA) released a memo in which she “urged” members to vote “yes” on vacating McCarthy’s position. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) has a somewhat unique take on the situation. In a post on X (formerly called Twitter) following the vote, he posted this:
“House Democrats will continue to put people over politics and work together in a bipartisan way to make life better for everyday Americans.
“It is our hope that traditional Republicans will walk away from MAGA extremism and join us in partnership for the good of the country.”
Who are the MAGA extremists he refers to, and are they the same people he only a moment ago rallied his party to vote with? Also, didn’t he just have an opportunity to join the “traditional Republicans” in “partnership” – and instead chose to side with those very people he – in the same sentence – denounced as guilty of “MAGA extremism”?
Historic and unprecedented the removal of the House speaker may be, but there are very few moments that have ever truly promised such a change in politics.
Try a quiz based on this article
The House of Representatives voted on ______ to remove Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) as Speaker of the House.
Show the answer
October 3.
All but three Democrats voted to remove McCarthy.
Show the answer
False.
How many Republicans voted to oust McCarthy?
Show the answer
8.
Who was responsible for starting McCarthy’s removal process?
Show the answer
Matt Gaetz.
Who assumed the role of speaker pro tempore in light of McCarthy’s absence?
Show the answer
Patrick McHenry.
Why was the Motion to Vacate started in the first place?
Show the answer
A 45-day stopgap funding bill that passed the House on September 29.
The speaker pro tempore’s first acts were to tell Pelosi to leave her plush offices and to ______.
Show the answer
Send lawmakers home for a week.
Who released a memo before the vote occurred urging members to vote ‘yes’ to removing McCarthy?
Show the answer
Katherine Clark.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries posted on X expressing hope that traditional Republicans will walk away from _______.
Show the answer
MAGA extremism.
The removal of McCarthy as Speaker of the House is historic and unprecedented because _____.
Show the answer
It has never been done before.
