Ultra-right Trump supporter wants to unseat McCarthy

The dispute within the Republican faction is escalating: the ultra-right MP Gaetz is calling for Kevin McCarthy to be removed.

Washington, DC – The ultra-right MP Matt Gaetz wants to push Kevin McCarthy from the top of the congressional chamber, the ardent supporter of the ex-president has a corresponding request Donald Trump submitted on Monday.

McCarthy immediately responded to the news on the online service X, formerly known as Twitter. The Californian wrote “Bring it on” – in German it means “Let’s go” or “Go ahead”.

McCarthy averted a shutdown, drawing the ire of Trump hardliners

McCarthy had previously clashed with Democrats in the House of Representatives USA agreed to a compromise on funding US federal agencies by November 17th and failed to implement the spending cuts demanded by right-wing hardliners. However, his position of power among Republican representatives has been shaky since his election at the beginning of the year.

The motion to dismiss is the continuation and culmination of a conflict within the Republican faction that has been simmering since the opposition party took over the majority in the House of Representatives at the beginning of the year. At the time, McCarthy needed a record 15 ballots to be elected leader of the House of Congress.

The reason was the resistance of Gaetz and other right-wing Republicans who did not want to support the politician from California. The group, made up of die-hard Trump supporters, forced the 58-year-old to make painful concessions in order to end their blockade.

Removal motion: McCarthy is hostage to right-wing Republican hardliners

McCarthy agreed to a regulation according to which a single member of parliament can submit a request for his removal. This makes the “Speaker,” as the chairman of the House of Representatives is called in the USA, particularly vulnerable – and a hostage to right-wing hardliners in his own ranks.

Now Gaetz wants to use this regulation to throw McCarthy out of office. The background is the dispute over the last-minute cancellation by Congress at the weekend Shutdowns. McCarthy had with the help of the Democrats from President Joe Biden adopted an interim budget to avert an impending budget freeze. With this he angered the 20 or so right-wing extremistsRepublican, who are pushing for massive spending cuts and have accepted the budget freeze with all its consequences.

McCarthy is accused of “secret deal” with Biden

Gaetz, an agitator from Florida known for polemical statements, accuses McCarthy of violating internal party commitments to austerity. The chairman of the House of Representatives even agreed to a “secret deal” with US President Joe Biden to approve new aid to Ukraine that was not included in the interim budget. “We have to move forward with new leadership that is trustworthy,” said the 41-year-old on CNN. “The one thing they all have in common is that no one trusts McCarthy.”

McCarthy, attacked in this way, reacted with defiant fearlessness. “I will survive,” the Republican asserted, as in the famous song by Gloria Gaynor. If Gaetz is angry that he prevented a shutdown, “then let’s have this fight.”

Conflict between Gaetz and McCarthy has been simmering for a long time

The hostility between the two men is nothing newt. As early as January, Gaetz was one of the Republicans who wanted to prevent McCarthy’s election as chairman of the House of Representatives. He described McCarthy as an opportunist without a spine and part of the Washington political establishment: “If you want to drain the swamp, you can’t put the biggest alligator in charge of it.” In one round, Gaetz even voted for Trump, who didn’t even care about the “Speaker “-Office had applied.

In the months that followed, the two men repeatedly clashed. Gaetz accused McCarthy of not making decisive enough progress in the impeachment proceedings against Biden, which right-wing hardliners wanted. When Gaetz threatened to file a motion for his removal in mid-September, McCarthy is said to have cursed his opponents in a group meeting behind closed doors: “Then submit the damn motion.”

Removal of McCarthy? Democrats could save him

That’s exactly what Gaetz has done now. Ironically, given the narrow majority in the House of Representatives, it could be the Democrats who save McCarthy. If enough Republicans vote against the chairman, he would have to rely on Democratic votes to stay in office.

The Biden party has little sympathy for McCarthy, who made a significant contribution to the rehabilitation of the right-wing populist among the Republicans after the storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021 with a visit to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago property. But his removal would have far-reaching consequences.

Removal would render the House of Representatives unable to act

The House of Representatives would be unable to act until further notice, just at a time when the Democrats are deciding on new aid for Kiev and want to pass a permanent budget by mid-November after the interim solution to the budget dispute. There would also be the question of which Republican would succeed McCarthy.

“As bad as McCarthy is as a speaker, it can always get worse,” Democratic Rep. Adam Smith said Monday. “We have to plan for what comes next.”

Meanwhile, Donald Trump has to stand trial for financial fraud. Trump denies all allegations and insulted the judges at the start of the trial. (AFP)