As you can see from the 2 tweets below, "Freedom" Caucus professional gadfly Matt Gaetz was busy threatening McCarthy yesterday. I really doubt he’d do it without Trump’s consent. And he and Trump would like to force McCarthy’s hand on the same difficult votes that significant numbers of Republicans don’t want to be forced to vote on, like impeaching Biden and a whole slew of far right priorities that significant numbers of Republicans are unenthusiastic about.
Yesterday, Emily Brooks reported that Gaetz told a far right radio host, Todd Starnes, that in regard to the long negotiation over the 15-ballot speakership contest, he had “worked very hard in January to develop a toolkit for House Republicans to use in a productive and positive way. I don’t believe we’ve used those tools as effectively as we should have.”
He was talking about seizing the initiative next week when Congress is backing session. What does that mean? “That means forcing votes on impeachment. And if Speaker McCarthy stands in our way, he may not have the job long,” threatened Gaetz.
Andrew Stanton wrote about how Gaetz could force a vote to vacate the chair (fire McCarthy), which he has the votes to do, unless the Democrats— or some Democrats— come to McCarthy’s defense. McCarthy has been trying to appease both the fascist wing that Gaetz represents and the more mainstream conservatives. Either side could kill anything that comes to the floor. “Tensions,” he wrote, “remain among House Republicans, and an upcoming legislative battle over a bill to fund the government through the next fiscal year threatens to highlight those divisions and upend McCarthy's speakership. Meanwhile, he has faced criticism from some on the right after negotiating a deal with Democrats to avert a default on the national debt, his stance for aid for Ukraine amid the Russian invasion, and for not releasing security tapes of the January 6, 2021, riot.”
McCarthy was asked on Twitter “why he has not done more to hold ‘McCarthy's feet to the fire,’ pledging to ‘be better’ about doing so in the future. ‘I've spent the last 8 months giving you my best effort at this with the tools at my disposal. It hasn't been good enough. I haven't been good enough. I know that. And I have reflected on it deeply. I will endeavor to be better. You deserve better than this,’ Gaetz responded.”
Gaetz is getting pressure and encouragement from neo-Nazis, like Will Tanner, editor of the fascist publication the American Tribune, who wrote that it’s “Time for Gaetz to regroup and then go scorched earth.” And Bannon, a Gaetz ally, came right out and “called on House Republicans to move to vacate the speaker position during an episode of his War Room podcast on Tuesday, pointing to the deficit deal, which he said did not solve his concerns surrounding the U.S. economy. ‘Now McCarthy and the same uni-party is going to be there and giving you more happy talk, and how you really need to focus on the long term and how we'll get there next year. They should get ready for the motion to vacate. He's clearly not up for the job,’ Bannon said.”
McCarthy is already facing pressure over the upcoming government funding bill after the Freedom Caucus, a coalition of the most conservative members of Congress, laid out several red lines for a funding bill. Some conservatives have also criticized House Republicans for not publicly releasing security tapes of the January 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol building.
Following the debt ceiling clash, Gaetz said he would make a "great" House leader as McCarthy faced conservative revolt.
Among the Congress Members who can’t afford to vote on any of the extremist measures Gaetz, Marjorie Traitor Greene, Lauren Boebert and most of the “Freedom” Caucus members are pushing, are swing district members like David Schweikert (R-AZ), Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ), John Duarte (R-CA), David Valadao (R-CA), Mike Garcia (R-CA), Young Kim (R-CA), Ken Calvert (R-CA), Michelle Steel (R-CA), Cory Mills (R-FL), Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL), Laurel Lee (R-FL), Maria Salazar (R-FL), Carlos Gimenez (R-FL), Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA)m Ashley Hinson (R-IA), Zach Nunn (R-IA), Bill Huizenga (R-MI), John James (R-MI), Ann Wagner (R-MO), Don Bacon (R-NE), Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ), Tom Kean (R-NJ), Nick LaLota (R-NY), Andrew Garbarino (R-NY), Anthony D’Esposito (R-NY), Mike Lawler (R-NY), Marc Molina (R-NY), Brandon Williams (R-NY), Mike Turner (R-OH), Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-OR), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Nancy Mace (R-SC), Andy Ogles (R-TN), Monica De La Cruz (R-TX), Tony Gonzales (R-TX), Rob Wittman (R-VA), Jen Kiggans (R-VA), Bryan Steil (R-WI) and Dreeick Van Orden (R-WI).
may the bridges they burn light the way to a quick and painful demise .