Timeline
No Heart, No Courage, No Brains
After his humiliating ousting as Speaker, Kevin McCathy is resigning from Congress because he lacked the heart, courage, or brains to stand up to the Wizard of Lies in Mar-a-Lago.
NO HEART: Former GOP Congressman Joe Walsh said of McCarthy, “He’s a hollow man. His only reason for being is the pursuit of power, his only guide is his personal ambition.”
NO COURAGE: Even the ultra conservative National Review blasted McCarthy for failing to stand up to Donald Trump with the headline “Where Is the Courage?”
NO BRAINS: McCarthy lacked the brains to realize what former congressman and MAGA loyalist Mo Brooks learned the hard way, “Donald Trump has no loyalty to anyone or anything but himself.”
The Republican Civil War
Kevin McCarthy is removed as House speaker by MAGA extremists who are determined to follow Trump's orders to shut down the government.
This is the first time in US history that the speaker of the House has been removed from office. McCarthy angered members of both parties, who accused the speaker of being untrustworthy. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called out House Republicans for embracing “chaos, dysfunction and extremism,” and said that it is the "the responsibility of the GOP members to end the House Republican Civil War."
Move The F**king Motion
Kevin McCarthy loses his cool as right wing extremists of his own Party challenge his leadership with threats to remove McCarthy as Speaker.
Kevin McCarthy is between a rock and hard place. Matt Gaetz and MAGA extremists are are demanding a government shutdown to force unpopular budget cuts, while swing district Republicans fear that path is political suicide. In a closed-door meeting, a frustrated McCarthy dared the members of his own caucus to follow through on their threats saying, “If you think you scare me because you want to file a motion to vacate, move the fucking motion!”
The Talented Mr. Santos
Rep. George Santos has "volunteered" to step down from his committee assignments after Kevin McCarthy was unwilling to hold him accountable for lying to voters.
With a slim five vote majority, McCarthy cut a deal with rightwing extremists in the House who embrace lies and rightwing conspiracy theories. So it came as no surprise that McCarthy has publicly defended Rep. George Santos who was elected by lying about his entire biography, religion, and even his own mother's death.
The Republican House of Lies
Kevin McCarthy appoints MAGA extremists, liars and seditionists to key House committees as part of a backroom deal to become speaker.
McCarthy bribed 21 Republican holdouts with key committee appointments to secure the votes needed to become speaker. This includes putting four election deniers on the House Oversight Committee. A White House spokesperson said in response that McCarthy has handed, "the keys of oversight to the most extreme MAGA members of the Republican caucus who promote violent rhetoric and dangerous conspiracy theories.”
We Need to Talk About Kevin
Kevin McCarthy cut a secret deal with anti-democratic Republicans who want to use the debt limit to push a rightwing agenda and shut down the government.
Kevin McCarthy is neither liked, respected, nor feared by members of the House. That is why it took 15 votes and a secret deal with ultra rightwing MAGA Republicans for McCarthy to become speaker. The GOP House agenda for the next two years is revenge investigations, culture wars, and defunding Social Security and Medicare.
History Will Remember Your Names
On the second anniversary of the January 6 attack on the Capitol, Biden honors the heroes who defended democracy while House Republicans capitulate to the insurrectionists' caucus and hold Congress hostage again.
The contrast could not be more stark. On January 6, President Biden awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal to 14 heroes who defended the Capitol and American democracy. At the very same time, the GOP leadership was negotiating the "terms of surrender" to House extremists who support violence, lies, and insurrection. The President said of the January 6 heroes that, “History will remember your names." The same can also be said of 147 congressional Republicans who voted to overturn American democracy.
Three Strikes and You're Out!
Kevin McCarthy is publicly humiliated by the rightwing Freedom Caucus by being the first House majority leader to lose the floor vote for speaker in 100 years.
For years McCarthy abased himself before Donald Trump in the hope of becoming House Speaker. And then on his big day, the Republican caucus dissolved into chaos when the Freedom Caucus blocked McCarthy on three consecutive speaker floor votes. Ultra rightwing Congressman Matt Gaetz said on the House floor, "Maybe the right person for the job of speaker of the House isn't someone who has sold shares of themself for more than a decade to get it."
McConnell and McCarthy: McCowards
The GOP leadership is silent as Trump calls for the "termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution.”
MAGA Republicans love Trump for his unapologetic embrace of white supremacy, bigotry, antisemitism, and crazy conspiracy theories. Unfortunately for Republicans, Trump is toxic with everyone else. The Republican Catch 22 is that they can't win elections with Trump, but they also can't win elections without MAGA Republicans still loyal to Trump.