Should I feel bad? My cheeks hurt, and my side aches. While the tears of joy have ebbed, I am no longer doubled over laughing. My posture is upright. The much-needed hilarity that came with watching the well-deserved humiliation of the former speaker, Kevin McCarthy, has passed. I woke up with a clarity of mind that I could not muster yesterday. I don’t feel bad.
What happened to Kevin McCarthy started decades ago. Entering politics was his first mistake. Kevin McCarthy has wanted to be Speaker of the House for years. His last opportunity was in 2015, but news of his marital infidelity with another member of Congress, also married, ended the woman’s political career, and McCarthy’s Speaker dreams. This time, 2022, he felt entitled.
On 1/6 after the mob was finally ejected and Congress reconvened. McCarthy blamed Donald Trump for the attack on the Capitol. The next day, he changed his mind. That lost him any dregs of respect Democrats may have had for him.
Republicans hold a gerrymandered House majority. Their lead is nine seats: 221 Republicans and 212 Democrats. Several of the new members who made the GOP the majority include a group endorsed by Trump. House Representative from Florida, Matt Gaetz corralled this strange herd of flocking idiots into his clown car; he drives it.
Patrick McHenry is on the right.
It took 15 votes for McCarthy to be elected Speaker. Why? The occupants of Gaetz’s clown car voted no. Kevin got the tallies needed after making promises that, in the end, would mean… [dramatic pause] his demise. One agreement stipulated, in writing, that at anytime any member of Congress could initiate a vote to remove him. That is how Kevin became Matt’s clown ____. [Female dog, rhymes with ditch.]
What did he promise for those votes?
✔️ McCarthy after he refusing to relinquish 1/6 security footage to the 1/6 commission, he gave it to Tucker Carlson.
✔️ McCarthy has twice refused to raise the debt ceiling, he insisted on an end to funding Ukraine and a 30% decrease in Social Security benefits.
✔️ McCarthy opened an impeachment inquiry of Biden, without cause.
✔️ Putin told Trump to tell Gaetz to make McCarthy meet those demands or else shut down the government.
Gaetz was angry that McCarthy negotiated to keep the government open. He accused Kevin of working with Democrats, so Gaetz initiated a vote to remove the speaker and worked with democrats to finish him. Irony.
Democrats offered to help McCarthy by voting in his favor if he worked with them. He said no.
Naturally, the media is painting McCarthy’s demise as an attack by democrats.
McCarthy could have expelled Gaetz for____ [pick a crime] Then Gaetz wouldn’t have been around to initiate the vote. McCarthy was unwilling to jeopardize losing even one number from his majority. So many Republican House members are at risk of indictment. Representative George Santos has been criminally indicted on charges of fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds, and making false statements. McCarthy won’t remove him because he’s a number.
If all the criminals are removed, as they should be, republicans lose their slim majority and the gavel goes to the other party.
This has been a well-played game of chicken. Kevin lost, and the clown café is now open. All (of your own) you can eat.
1/6 conspirators include:
- Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.)
- Mo Brooks (R-Ala.)
- Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.)
- Madison Cawthorn (R-NC), no longer in office
- Louie Gohmert (R-Texas)
- Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.)
- Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.)
Factoid: McCarthy was one of 147 Republicans who voted to overturn the 2020 election results.
I remember McCarthy joking that when Speaker Nancy Pelosi would hand over the gavel, it would be hard for him not to hit her on the head with it.
I remember when he stage whispered to Paul Ryan, “There’s two people I think Putin pays: Rohrabacher and Trump.”
The GOP is tossing around names for a new Speaker:
Tom Emmer: Minnesota – admit’s Trump lost
Elise Stefanik: New York’s Trump endorsed Member of Congress,
Tom Cole: Oklahoma’s Trump endorsed Member of Congress,
Steve Scalise: Calls himself “[KKK Leader] David Duke without the baggage.”
Nancy Mace: South Carolina’s Trump endorsed conspiracy theorist who believes President Biden runs secret prostitution rings.
Jim Jordan: Recognized for allegedly covering up the sexual abuse of 177 college wrestlers at Ohio State. HBO- what happened to George Clooney’s documentary?
Donald Trump: First President to be impeached twice, first President to be (repeatedly) indicted, First President convicted of rape in a civil suit, 4 criminal indictments
I imagine Trump will respond to word of this: “I’m shocked and flattered by the invitation that I dictated. I will consider taking on the role for forgoing prison time. Many people (Matt, Marg, Biggs, Boobs, Brooks, Jordan, Perry, Gohmert), are saying I would be the best speaker because they still want those pardons.”
https://x.com/jaketapper/status/1709343029968933323?s=46&t=o0VBjp_pTPGAQM1X_HCy1Q
We do have an “Acting Speaker” The first order of business by the new acting speaker, Patrick McHenry, the little guy with a bow tie who makes the gavel look like Thor’s hammer, was to slam the gavel as hard as he could.
(Did Pelosi stand on a milk crate?)
He then directed his tirade at the former (and best) Speaker Nancy Pelosi to move out of her office by night’s end. The insufficient man wants her in a small work space.
Pelosi is in California, has not been in DC because she is attending the funeral of her close friend Senator Dianne Feinstein.
The following was Pelosi’s response:
“With all the important decisions that the new Republican Leadership must address, which we are all eagerly awaiting, one of the first actions taken by the new Speaker Pro Tempore was to order me to immediately vacate my office in the Capitol. Sadly, because I am in California to mourn the loss of and pay tribute to my dear friend Dianne Feinstein, I am unable to retrieve my belongings at this time. This eviction is a sharp departure from tradition. As Speaker, I gave former Speaker Hastert a significantly larger suite of offices for as long as he wished. “Office space doesn’t matter to me, but it seems to be important to them. Now that the new Republican Leadership has settled this important matter, let’s hope they get to work on what’s truly important for the American people.”
~Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/04/us/politics/house-speaker-replacement-jordan-scalise.html
Matt Gaetz, flamethrower and history maker who ousted U.S. speaker
A lot from Lydia 