Gaetz Votes for Trump in House Speaker Votes

Ryan Morgan
By Ryan Morgan
January 5, 2023Politics
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Gaetz Votes for Trump in House Speaker Votes
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) delivers remarks in the House Chamber during the third day of elections for Speaker of the House at the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington on Jan. 5, 2023. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

As the House of Representatives convened on Thursday and held multiple rounds of voting for the next speaker of the House, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) voted for former President Donald Trump to assume the leadership role over the congressional body.

Lawmakers in the Republican-majority House have held eleven votes between Tuesday and Thursday to select the next speaker, but no candidate has received the 218-vote majority required to take the speakership. Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) is the leading Republican to assume the speakership, but Gaetz and 19 other Republicans have held out against supporting him.

In recent rounds of votes for the speaker, McCarthy has secured 201 total votes while Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.J.) has received 212. A block of 20 Republicans have supported Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) while opposing McCarthy, including Gaetz. In the 7th, 8th, and 11th rounds, Gaetz nominated and voted for Trump to assume the speakership, even though Trump endorsed McCarthy for the speakership after the first day of voting for the speakership.

Trump Continues to Support McCarthy

Trump continued to voice his support for McCarthy as voting for the speakership stretched into a third day.

“Let’s get this thing over with,” Trump told Fox News Digital on Thursday. “I think it is a dangerous game, and, frankly, if they are not happy with him, they can do something about it at a later date.”

The former president also told Fox News that he supports McCarthy being elected to the speakership and putting an end to the drawn-out process to select the speaker. “What I don’t support is allowing this to continue onward.”

Gaetz Wants Speakership in ‘Straitjacket’ if McCarthy Wins

It remains to be seen if McCarthy will eventually be elected to the speakership, but in an interview with Fox News on Wednesday night, Gaetz said he wants the speakership to be restrained if McCarthy does eventually win the leadership position.

“There are only two outcomes here: Either Kevin [McCarthy] bows out realizing there’s no path to him becoming speaker of the House, even if he picks up one or two or three or five of the 20 [Republicans] who have opposed him a half dozen times on the floor, or he essentially has to wake up, bring the House into session and put on a straightjacket with a rules package that we’ve presented to him that doesn’t allow for a lot of discretion for the speaker of the House,” Gaetz said. “The reason that we’ve demanded that is that we do not trust Kevin McCarthy and it’s not a small body of work. The guy’s been in leadership in Washington, D.C., for 14 years and this town needs to change.”

Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), who has supported McCarthy’s bid for the speakership, told NTD News he opposes giving certain concessions to the 20 Republicans still opposing McCarthy.

“One thing that I’m not on board with is the idea that you have to guarantee them X number of slots on the [Appropriations] Committee or the Rules Committee,” Gallagher said. “Because I just think that that’s such a bizarre precedent where every faction, whether it’s the moderates or the whatever caucus, is going to demand ‘I want—where are our seats?’ … And then you’ve subverted the steering committee process.”

Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) also shared concerns about McCarthy granting too many concessions to holdout Republicans that would weaken the role of the speaker. As one of the concessions, McCarthy agreed to reimplement a rule that lets lawmakers motion to vacate the chair and call for a vote on a new speaker. On Wednesday, Lieu told NTD News that this particular concession “weakens the position” of the speaker and “makes it very difficult for the speaker to function and it would make the speaker beholden to a very small group.”

Democrats Question Republican Ability to Govern Over Speakership Delays

In addition to his concerns about weakening the position of the speakership, Lieu also told NTD News that the speakership delays are causing consequences for the country and preventing Congress from doing its normal work.

“We can’t see any classified documents right now. We can’t conduct oversight. We can’t have committee meetings. We can’t function whatsoever,” Lieu said.

Reacting to criticisms that the continued delays show that Republicans can’t govern, Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.) said, “Well, we haven’t had the opportunity to govern.”

“I think you’re going to see all the Republicans united on all these policy issues that [Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.)] had outlined on all the priority bills that we’re going to do,” Steube added. “I think you’re going to see all Republicans united on that. And I frankly, I think you’re going to see Democrats vote for some of these policy bills.”

Gallagher shared some concerns about delays on his own agenda items, like the formation of a select committee on China-related issues.

“One thing we need to do, and where I’m getting eager is, we were supposed to pass the rule yesterday that would have created the select committee on China that I’m supposed to chair, and we have a very aggressive plan that we’re ready to launch,” Gallagher said. “We can’t launch it until the committee is created.”

Gallagher said he’s had to revise his plans for the select committee on China because of delays on selecting a speaker.

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