Matt Gaetz Pulls A Karen On #PoorKevin McCarthy, Reports Him For Being A ‘Squatter’ To Architect of The Capitol
Representative Matt Gaetz, who reportedly would rather see Hakeem Jeffries become House Speaker than let fellow Republican Kevin McCarthy win the role, would very much like to know how long McCarthy can occupy the office of the Speaker of the House before he’s “considered a squatter.”
On Tuesday, after a small faction of Republicans led by Florida Representative Gaetz successfully blocked California Representative McCarthy’s speakership bid, Gaetz pulled a Karen and wrote to the Architect of the Capitol (AOC) to “inform” him that McCarthy had been occupying the office of the Speaker of the House.
“What is the basis in law, House rule, or precedent to allow someone who has placed second in three successive speaker elections to occupy the Speaker of the House Office?” Gaetz inquired. “How long will he remain there before he is considered a squatter?”
For those who don’t know, the Architect of the Capitol is the federal agency responsible for the maintenance, operation, development, and preservation of the United States Capitol complex, which includes the Capitol building, Congressional office buildings, the Library of Congress buildings, the Supreme Court building, and the U.S. Botanic Garden. It’s unclear what power they have over politicians “squatting” in offices.
McCarthy, the GOP leader whose dream job is to become Speaker of the House, did prematurely start moving into the office. Boxes of his belongings were seen being wheeled into the speaker’s suite on January 2, a day before the house was set to vote on who would succeed Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
When the day came, the California representative failed to secure the necessary 218 votes from the 435-seat House, which is controlled by the Republicans with 222 seats. McCarthy was only able to receive 203 votes in the first two rounds and endured more fallout with just 202 votes on the third ballot. Jeffries, the Democratic bet, was ahead of him all three times with all the Democrats’ 212 votes.
Gaetz has been vocal about wanting to block McCarthy’s bid for a while, claiming that the California representative has “no idealogy” and would just “end up failing Republicans and caving to liberals.” The Trump-aligned Florida representative wanted someone farther to the right to push the GOP agenda.
“If you want to drain the swamp you can’t put the biggest alligator in control of the exercise,” Gaetz told members of the media prior to the vote on Tuesday.
The House agreed to return at noon on Wednesday, and perhaps finally elect a Speaker to formally begin to “get things done” as second-ranking Republican Louisiana Representative Steve Scalise said on Tuesday in a speech to urge Gaetz and other protesting Republicans to just drop it.
Gaetz promises to stand firm. “We may see the cherry blossoms before we have a Speaker,” he said.
McCarthy’s loss marks the first time a nominee failed to secure speakership after a round of voting in 100 years. Massachusetts Representative Nathaniel Banks holds the record of the most contentious speaker election in the history of the House. He was rejected 132 times over a period of two months before finally clinching the gavel of the 34th Congress in 1855.
Information for this briefing was found via The Hill, CBC News, The Independent, Twitter, and the sources and companies mentioned. The author has no securities or affiliations related to this organization. Not a recommendation to buy or sell. Always do additional research and consult a professional before purchasing a security. The author holds no licenses.
