U.S. House votes to remove Kevin McCarthy

Dissident Republicans in the U.S. House voted with Democrats on Tuesday to oust Kevin McCarthy as speaker, a historic move that came just nine months after he secured the gavel following days of negotiating with the GOP’s right flank and 15 rounds of voting.

It wasn’t immediately clear after the vote how the House would proceed in the coming days, having entered uncharted territory. No speaker has ever before been removed by the House. North Carolina Rep. Patrick McHenry was named speaker pro tem until the election of a new speaker.

The 216-210 vote on a motion to vacate, which Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz filed Monday evening, capped off months of growing dissent among a small group of House Republicans.

Republican Reps. Andy Biggs of Arizona, Ken Buck of Colorado, Tim Burchett of Tennessee, Eli Crane of Arizona, Gaetz, Bob Good of Virginia, Nancy Mace of South Carolina and Matt Rosendale of Montana voted to remove McCarthy.

The historic vote threw the GOP-controlled House into chaos as lawmakers struggled to figure out what to do next. The session ended with another surprise: It was announced that Financial Services Chair Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., a top McCarthy ally, is now the speaker pro tempore, put on a secret list McCarthy provided to the clerk in January in the event of a vacancy.

After assuming the speaker's chair, where he'll serve in an interim capacity, McHenry slammed down the gavel in anger.

In a private meeting after the vote, McCarthy told GOP colleagues that he would not run for speaker again given that he didn’t have the support to overcome his political foes, lawmakers said. Moments later at a packed news conference, he lashed out at Gaetz and the other rebels, calling them fake conservatives.

After the vote Tuesday, Matt Gaetz told reporters that this move "represents the ripping off of the band aid, and that's what we need to do to get back on track."

McCarthy was defiant but resigned to the vote following a lengthy meeting of House Republicans earlier in the day.

"If you throw a speaker out that has 99 percent of their conference, that kept government open and paid the troops, I think we're in a really bad place," McCarthy told reporters in the Capitol Tuesday morning.

At various points, others groaned and laughed at Mr Gaetz's comments.

As each member's vote was recorded by a verbal roll call, Mr McCarthy seemed to know his fate was sealed.

When the eighth Republican vote against him came in, he was staring straight ahead with little expression on his face.

Mr Gaetz pointedly walked over to where House Democrats exit the chamber and left among them.

Two Democrats hopped into the lift with me as the Capitol building emptied.

 Read more

Sarah H

Also on site :

• Jamie Lee Curtis reveals cinematographer’s remark led to her getting plastic surgery at 25
• San Francisco shows planned for Grateful Dead offshoot Dead & Company
• New York’s Deepest Pockets Turn Out to Fight Poverty