Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) said House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's (R-CA) collaboration with Democrats to bypass Republicans on a debt deal vote could trigger a motion to vacate.
Gaetz told Newsmax that if McCarthy were to use Democrats to pass legislation most Republicans are against, it would constitute a violation of the deal that made him speaker and could lead to his ouster.
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“If a majority of Republicans are against a piece of legislation and you use Democrats to pass it, that would immediately be a black letter violation of the deal we had with McCarthy to allow his ascent to the speakership, and it would likely trigger an immediate motion to vacate,” Gaetz said.
“I think Speaker McCarthy knows that,” he continued. “That’s why he’s working hard to make sure that he gets, you know, 120, 150, 160 votes. And that’s why those of us who are not supportive of the bill are trying to point out that many of the changes are cosmetic in nature.”
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Gaetz previously indicated that he would not vote for the spending bill over concerns that it would add $4 trillion more to the national debt. He joins a growing number of conservative legislators rebelling against the spending bill despite McCarthy's hailing of it as a victory for conservatives.
So far, only Rep. Dan Bishop (R-NC) has pledged to oust McCarthy over the debt ceiling bill.