Kevin McCarthy’s sacking deepens the chaos in American government
Kevin McCarthy’s stint as speaker of America’s House of Representatives ended the way it had begun: in utterly humiliating fashion. Members of the lower chamber of Congress disposed of their leader for the first time in American history on October 3rd. Despite earning support from 210 of the 221 House Republicans, eight hardliners teamed up with 208 Democrats to fire Mr McCarthy. Shortly thereafter the former speaker announced he would not try to regain the title. The coming weeks are likely to be chaotic, and the results of this chapter of congressional dysfunction will reverberate far beyond Capitol Hill.
An embarrassing ejection looked to be on the cards as soon as Mr McCarthy won the speaker’s gavel in January. As part of a deal with recalcitrant Republicans after 15 rounds of voting, Mr McCarthy agreed to allow a single congressman, at any time, for any reason, to call a vote for his removal as speaker. Matt Gaetz, an elaborately coiffed representative from Florida, had threatened to use the so-called motion to vacate for some time. Mr McCarthy’s recent dealmaking with Democrats to avoid a government shutdown pushed Mr Gaetz over the edge.
“You all know Matt Gaetz. You know it was personal,” Mr McCarthy said at a press conference after being ousted. Mr Gaetz denies that personal pique drove his fight against the former speaker, but the Florida Republican has faced a long-running House Ethics Committee inquiry into alleged sexual misconduct and misuse of funds. No doubt he was not thrilled that Mr McCarthy failed to stop the investigation. Yet the rebel leader probably had a mix of motives for making his move now.
2023-10-03 22:48:53
Article from www.economist.com
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