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By Aleks Phillips
U.S. News Reporter
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Several House Republicans expressed their support for removing Speaker Kevin McCarthy, as Matt Gaetz, a member of the party's conservative wing, filed a motion to vacate the office after a short-term budget deal was agreed.
McCarthy has endured a tricky relationship with the right wing of his party since his ascension to the speaker's chair in January, and a challenge from Gaetz, a Florida representative, was hinted at after a draft motion to vacate was discovered in a Congressional bathroom. "Bring it on," the California Republican wrote defiantly on Monday night.
The two have had an escalating disagreement in recent months, with Gaetz accusing McCarthy of not sufficiently pursuing the interests of himself and other further-right House Republicans. While Gaetz and other MAGA-aligned representatives have taken issue with McCarthy's negotiated settlements with Democrats over the budget, the House speaker has described the dispute as "personal."
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Moderate Republicans have said the ploy could "paralyze" the lower house, as all votes will be paused until a new speaker is elected.
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The removal of a speaker requires a simple majority, or 218 votes. While few Republicans have so far expressed an interest in ousting McCarthy, were the 212 House Democrats to join the rebellion, it would only take six GOP representatives to vote for the motion for it to pass.
On Saturday, minority leader Hakeem Jeffries said they "haven't had a discussion" on which way the bloc would vote, according to NBC. There are reports that McCarthy could reach out to Democrats for support.
But Democratic representative for New York Dan Goldman told MSNBC that McCarthy had "done nothing that would warrant me not voting" for Jeffries instead of McCarthy. Probed on whether he would support the motion to vacate, Goldman said: "Unless something changes." Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has also said she would vote in favor.
Newsweek approached the office of Jeffries via email for comment on Tuesday.
As well as Matt Gaetz, who will likely vote in favor of his own motion, Tim Burchett, a representative for Tennessee, has indicated he would seek to remove McCarthy.
Speaking to CNN on Monday evening, he said he was torn between supporting his "friend" McCarthy and acting on his "conscience." He added: "If it was right now, I would vote to oust him, yes."
Virginia congressman Bob Good is also in favor of the motion to vacate, according to CNN chief congressional correspondent Manu Raju, who reported that Arizona's Andy Biggs is "favorably disposed" to vote in support of it.
Eli Crane, another Arizona representative, told CNN earlier in the day that the people he represented "want to see stronger leadership, so I'm all about it." The outlet later reported he had publicly confirmed his support.
Meanwhile, Colorado congressman Ken Buck is on the fence about the motion, telling MSNBC that he wanted to hear what McCarthy "has to say" before choosing which way he will vote. Buck added: "He cannot be trusted, and I want to understand why he acts the way he does before I make a final decision on how to vote."
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