Matt Gaetz attacks McCarthy, comparing him to Pelosi as Republican spokesman fight turns ugly

Rep. Matt Gaetz ripped up Chairman Kevin McCarthy as a group of Freedom Caucus members insisted they still have a “no” to the California Republican’s bid for the speakership.

Gaetz, R-Fla., said he and his riotous peers “take no pleasure” in the “discomfort” that the internal turmoil over who will lead the House Republicans will bring.

“If you’re going to drain the swamp, you can’t put the largest alligator in charge of the exercise. I’m a Florida man and I know what I’m talking about,” Gaetz told reporters after a GOP conference meeting where McCarthy made his final bid for speakership.

Gaetz and other anti-McCarthy Republicans say that McCarthy supported the “status quo” during his 14 years in the House leadership.

Gaetz claimed there was “very little difference” between McCarthy and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.

McCarthy, meanwhile, said those who oppose his speakership are putting themselves first. He said Gaetz even expressed that he would be fine if House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries won the gavel.

“If you’re going to drain the swamp, you can’t put the largest alligator in charge of the exercise. I’m a Florida man and I know what I’m talking about,” Rep. Matt Gaetz told reporters after a GOP conference meeting where McCarthy made his final bid for speakership.

McCarthy, meanwhile, said those who oppose his speakership are putting themselves first. He said Gaetz even expressed that he would be fine if House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries won the gavel

Matt Gaetz said, “I don’t care if we go to plurality and vote for Hakeem Jeffries, and it hurts the new frontline members not to get re-elected.” Well, this isn’t about America, and I will always fight to put the American people first. Quite a few individuals who want something for themselves. So we could have a fight on the floor,” the GOP leader said.

McCarthy described the conference meeting as “intense” and said he would not “empower certain members over others by giving in to the demands of those who oppose him.”

In a Sunday letter to colleagues, McCarthy announced several key concessions, including a motion to vacate the presidency with a five-vote hurdle in exchange for conference-wide support.

But the concessions came too little too late, according to several members.

Gaetz said they wanted other commitments to bring about specific laws.

He said McCarthy has refused to commit to introducing legislation on term limits for members of Congress and has refused to commit to introducing Texas Republicans’ plan to tighten border security. Gaetz said they also asked for a balanced budget, written by the conservative Republican Studies Committee. All of their requests were denied.

“It’s true that we struggle with trusting Mr. McCarthy because our viewpoints, his positions, keep shifting like sand under you,” Gaetz said.

“Even Kevin McCarthy’s own mentor recently said that the lies are always changing.”

During the caucus meeting, Rep. Mike Rogers, chair of the Armed Services Committee, said members who did not vote for McCarthy would not receive committee assignments.

Gaetz said he and his anti-McCarthy cohorts were unconcerned.

“Our position is that if Kevin McCarthy is the Speaker of the House and we are not able to ensure that there is behind the agenda and energy behind our oversight, then the committee assignments don’t mean that much anyway,” the congressman said.

“I’m not here to participate in a puppet show where we hand over a bunch of messaging bills, send them to the Senate, watch them die without lobbying, and not hold the Biden administration accountable. ”

And despite a private meeting Monday night between McCarthy, Gaetz, Rep. Lauren Boebert and Rep. Scott Perry, Boebert, R-Colo., said she was still a “no” to McCarthy.

Rep. Lauren Boebert said she was still a “no” to McCarthy

Rep. Scott Perry said he was a no unless McCarthy made further concessions

“Here we are insulted instead of sworn in and we could have solved that months ago,” Boebert.

Things reportedly got heated at Tuesday morning’s conference session when McCarthy let out a “damn it” and Boebert said in response to his speech, “That’s bullshit.”

McCarthy had told members he would no longer negotiate, but Boebert said a McCarthy staffer told her he was open to offering a single member’s motion to evict in exchange for a vote, as was her sticking point.

A single eviction motion, similar to a no-confidence vote in the parliamentary process, means a member of the conference could vote on McCarthy as speaker at any time.

Five members of the GOP caucus self-identified as “Never Kevin” Republicans. Another nine current and incoming House Republicans signed a letter calling McCarthy’s announcement of concessions “almost impossibly late.”

McCarthy can only afford to lose four votes.

Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., said he offered McCarthy a route to 218 votes that included a number of other concessions.

“We had a path for him, we laid it all down,” Perry told reporters. Perry said McCarthy “declined to serve” on certain names provided by the Freedom Caucus for serving on various committees.

Perry said as it stands now he’s still a no to McCarthy. He said he’s been trying to work since the summer to get McCarthy to make the necessary concessions to get the votes for speaker.

“In December, there were people who said, ‘I’m not going to vote for Kevin McCarthy.’ But I’m still working to avoid that moment that we’re in right now. The whole time.’

Boebert claimed it was McCarthy who asked them to provide names for committees in exchange for their votes.

“We were told to come up with lists of which members have to sit on which committees, and that’s exactly what we did,” she said. “This is not a personal wish list. That is not unreasonable.”