For the first time in United States history, the Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy has been voted out in a 216-210 vote among Congress. This is not only a historic first, but also a turning point in modern day politics as we know it.
This ousting was brought to the table by Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz, a face of right wing extremism to many. Gaetz has been calling for McCarthy’s resignation since the day he was voted in. If we look back at January, we can remember when it took 15 voting sessions over four days to vote McCarthy in, a sign of the Republican party running in opposite directions. Now why exactly was the Speaker ousted?
In the past weeks we have been faced with a potential government shutdown looming over our heads. A government shutdown is caused when the legislative branch, a.k.a congress, cannot pass crucial bills that continue to let our country run, thus shutting down the bureaucracy itself. Just hours before the shutdown was due to happen, McCarthy made a sly deal with the Democrats, his opposition party, to keep the Government alive. This was Gaetz and many of both Republicans and Democrats tipping points. With Democrat Pramila Jayapal saying, “Let them wallow in their pigsty of incompetence.” It’s clear that the House is divided, but how will this continue?
McCarthy was ruled out of running again, and so far Louisiana’s Steve Scalise and Ohio’s Jim Jordan have thrown their hat in the ring. Republicans will come together on October 11 to vote who they want to replace the Speaker. Patrick McHenry of North Carolina will take the place of Speaker until one is formally elected. Everything happening now is extremely unprecedented, as we’ve never seen anything like this in our history. We are in for even more ups and downs in American politics in the coming months.
