House Democrats emerged from a closed-door meeting Tuesday indicating they are likely to vote in favor of ousting Rep. Kevin McCarthy from his speakership later Tuesday.
The Democratic caucus held a two-hour meeting in which they discussed whether to side with Rep. Matt Gaetz, the far-right Florida congressman who moved Monday to remove McCarthy, or a speaker who authorized an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden and has been accused of breaking promises he made in a deal with Biden earlier this year to raise the debt ceiling.
A majority of the House would need to vote in favor of removing McCarthy. As of Tuesday morning, only five Republicans had signaled they will support Gaetz’s effort. That means the votes of all 212 House Democrats would be needed to strip McCarthy, R-Calif., of his speakership.
Talking to reporters after the meeting, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries did not give any clear indication of what was decided. Instead, he said Democrats “are ready, willing and able to work together with our Republican colleagues, but it is on them to join us to move the Congress and the country forward.”
But in a “Dear Colleague” letter, Jeffries wrote: “Given their [Republicans’] unwillingness to break from MAGA extremism in an authentic and comprehensive manner, House Democratic leadership will vote yes on the pending Republican Motion to Vacate the Chair.”
Without mentioning McCarthy by name, Jeffries blasted the speaker for kowtowing to the demands of far-right members, authorizing the Biden impeachment inquiry without a full vote of the House and overseeing a majority that “hijacked the National Defense Authorization Act and turned the bill into a right-wing wish list full of highly partisan poison pills,” among other grievances.
Several Democratic lawmakers left the meeting vowing not to save McCarthy’s job.
Asked if a decision was made for Democrats to unify against McCarthy, Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., said, “Yes,” The Hill reported.
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., told reporters: “Democrats have been unified since we came into this conference, and I’m pretty confident you’ll see that unity again today. What we in that room took stock of was that this is someone who continuously lies, whose word is not bond.”
“We’re not here to keep Kevin McCarthy in power,” said Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass. “This is their problem. If they have the votes to keep him, then so be it.”
Their lack of trust toward McCarthy became a popular refrain among Democrats after the meeting.
“Nobody trusts Kevin McCarthy, and why should they?” said Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash.
Earlier Tuesday, Jeffries had told MSNBC it “remains to be seen” what Democrats will do when it’s time to vote.
“We do know that the House of Representatives has largely been turned over to the most extreme elements of the House Republican Conference, and that’s not good for the American people,” Jeffries said. “We’ll have to see how that plays out in the context of this possible motion to vacate.”
Jeffries added that “one way or the other” the Republican infighting must end.
“It is not a productive situation for the country to find itself in with all of the challenges that we continue to work through,” he said.
Some House Democrats had said they were reluctant to support McCarthy at all, while others have indicated they might be open to concessions from McCarthy in exchange for their votes.
“I am not a cheap date,” McGovern told The New York Times, adding he, like many Democrats, has serious trust issues with McCarthy.
Speaking to CNBC on Tuesday morning, McCarthy said Democrats “haven’t asked for anything. I’m not going to provide anything.”
Jayapal told the podcast “Pod Save America” that the Congressional Progressive Caucus, which she chairs, is seeking “to put as much power in the hands of Hakeem Jeffries our leader as possible.”
Saying McCarthy is “unreliable” and “a liar,” she said any concessions he makes would need to be written into the House’s rules.
“Under no circumstances would I ever vote to keep extremist and liar Kevin McCarthy as Speaker,” California Rep. Robert Garcia wrote on social media.
“I’m not voting to save Speaker McCarthy who is okay with kids being mowed down in their schools,” wrote Florida Rep. Maxwell Frost. “I’m with Leader Jeffries.”
Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., said Monday he is “not in much of a mood to help him [McCarthy] out.”
“MAGA Republicans have to solve the problems that MAGA Republicans create,” Raskin said, according to The New York Times.
“They need to work this out,” Connecticut Rep. Rosa DeLauro, who leads Democrats on the powerful Appropriations Committee, told reporters. “This is not for us to get involved.”
New Hampshire Rep. Annie Kuster, who leads the nearly 100-member strong New Democrat Coalition, said in a statement that “time and again, Speaker McCarthy has proven that he is not a man of his word.”
“He is simply not trustworthy,” Kuster said. “While Republicans have lost their way, Democrats stand united in our purpose and our Caucus. Leader Jeffries continues to be the steady, forward-looking voice we need to lead our country forward. New Dems are proud to stand with our Leader and our Caucus to deliver progress for the American people, not chaos.”
Omar told MSNBC on Sunday that she “can’t wait to take the vote to vacate.” McCarthy has attacked Omar on multiple occasions and in February paved the way for House Republicans to remove her from the Foreign Affairs Committee, citing her past anti-Israel comments.
“It is essentially an issue of governance,” Omar said. “We know that McCarthy has not been able to contain his conference. We know that he has not been able to keep the promises that he’s made” to Democratic leaders.
