Republican Congressman Supports Motion to Remove House Speaker McCarthy
Representative Andy Biggs from Arizona has announced his support for the motion to vacate House Speaker Kevin McCarthy from his position. While he believes McCarthy could “probably” survive the vote, Biggs is joining the effort to remove him.
This development comes after Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida initiated the motion to remove McCarthy. Gaetz, a staunch Republican, has been vocal about his concerns regarding government overspending and has threatened to oust McCarthy if those concerns are not addressed.
The tension escalated over the weekend when McCarthy collaborated with Democrats to pass a stopgap funding bill. Gaetz responded by declaring his intention to file a “motion to vacate” this week.
As part of the efforts to secure the speaker’s chair, McCarthy has made it easier to file a motion to vacate by lowering the threshold to one person. However, for the motion to succeed, it requires a simple majority vote of 218 out of 434 members.
Despite voicing his opposition to McCarthy’s speaker bid since last November, Biggs acknowledges that Gaetz’s effort may not be successful. He believes that a stronger case needs to be made to ensure success.
During an interview with “Just the News, No Noise” television show, Biggs, a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, expressed his dissatisfaction with McCarthy’s leadership and handling of the government budget. He stated, “I am deeply and profoundly unhappy with our leadership that we’ve seen from Speaker McCarthy.” However, he also mentioned that he thinks McCarthy will likely survive the vote.
“I personally will be voting to vacate,” emphasized Biggs, highlighting his dissatisfaction with McCarthy’s handling of the government budget.
Biggs criticized the delays in passing crucial bills, stating, “We were supposed to get this done by June 15. We were promised we’d get it done. And we didn’t get it done. And even the one bill we got done in July, they didn’t ever transmit to the Senate.”
He further added, “About a year ago, when we were talking about these types of things, in December, in January, I predicted that this would happen. I said that his history, Mr. Speaker’s history, was that he would make deals with the Democrats. He made a deal with the Democrats; every Democrat voted for that [continuing resolution] that he put up last weekend. And that’s because the Republicans who want to reduce spending, we’re left with no place else to go.”
Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) speaks to reporters as he leaves a House Republican caucus meeting at the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 14, 2023. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
McCarthy has confirmed that the House of Representatives will vote on the motion later today. With a narrow 222–213 majority, McCarthy can only afford to lose up to five votes from his caucus.
In addition to Biggs, other Republican representatives such as Eli Crane, Tim Burchett, and Bob Good have indicated their support for Gaetz’s motion.
If successful, this would be the first time in U.S. history that House lawmakers voted to remove their leader.
“I’m confident I’ll hold on,” McCarthy expressed to reporters.
Reuters contributed to this report.
Where is McCarthy from?
A member of the Republican Party, he currently represents California’s 20th congressional district, which encompasses most of the San Joaquin Valley. Bakersfield, California, U.S. Born in Bakersfield, California, McCarthy graduated from California State University, Bakersfield. E government budget and overspending. He believes that McCarthy has not adequately addressed these concerns and therefore supports the motion to remove him as House Speaker.
Biggs’ decision to join Gaetz’s effort to remove McCarthy comes after tensions escalated over the weekend. McCarthy collaborated with Democrats to pass a stopgap funding bill, which further intensified Gaetz’s concerns about government overspending. In response, Gaetz declared his intention to file a “motion to vacate” this week, signaling his determination to address these issues.
It is worth noting that McCarthy has made it easier to file a motion to vacate by lowering the threshold to just one person. However, for the motion to succeed, it still requires a simple majority vote of 218 out of 434 members. Despite this, Biggs acknowledges that Gaetz’s effort may not be successful and believes that a stronger case needs to be made to ensure success.
During an interview with the “Just the News, No Noise” television show, Biggs expressed his dissatisfaction with McCarthy’s leadership and handling of the government budget. As a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, he emphasized his unhappiness with the current leadership and stated, “I am deeply and profoundly unhappy with our leadership that we’ve seen from Speaker McCarthy.” Although he believes that McCarthy will likely survive the vote, Biggs made it clear that he will be voting to vacate.
This development showcases the divisions within the Republican Party regarding leadership and government overspending. While some, like McCarthy, may prioritize collaboration and compromise with Democrats, others, like Gaetz and Biggs, favor a more conservative and fiscally responsible approach.
The outcome of this motion to remove McCarthy as House Speaker remains uncertain. However, it is evident that there are prominent Republicans who are dissatisfied with his leadership. As the motion moves forward, the Republican Party will need to address these internal divisions and work towards a unified approach to effectively address the issues at hand.
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