On Saturday, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy decided that keeping the government operating was more important than kowtowing to the extremist wing of his party as he joined with Democrats to pass a stop gap 45-day funding bill.
It was truly a shocking reversal for the Californian. McCarthy had been saying for weeks that he wanted to pass a GOP funding bill without Democratic support. Accordingly, he loaded up a funding bill with budget cuts far beyond what had been negotiated between Joe Biden and McCarthy during the debt limit debate, a border security bill, and other “poison pills” that Democrats would never support.
Unfortunately for McCarthy, the rabid right-wingers in his party didn’t care about funding the government. They wanted the speaker’s head on the block and continually blunted efforts to keep the government operating.
Faced with the intransigence of the Rep. Matt Gaetz-led nihilists, and a rebellion among his own supporters who were heartily sick and tired of the antics of the Gaetz (R-Fla.) crowd, McCarthy pulled a 180-degree turn and offered a mostly “clean” funding bill. There was some disaster relief money but no funding for the war in Ukraine. There was also no money for border security and the funding levels offered by the Freedom Caucus were abandoned.
“You can’t form a coalition of more Democrats than you have Republicans who you’re supposed to be the leader of, and not think that there’s going to be serious, serious fallout,” Rep. Matt Rosendale (R-Mont.) said.
More than half the Republicans in the House voted down the spending proposal. They were joined by one Democrat making the final tally 335-91.
In the end, it was McCarthy supporters who turned the tide and foreshadowed an all-out war between MAGA Republicans and traditional Republicans.
“There was an outcry from rank-and-file that want a [continuing resolution]. We’re tired of fu**ing around with these whack jobs. They voted against it yesterday, so let’s just put up a clean CR,” said Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.)
“If someone wants to make a motion against me, bring it,” McCarthy told reporters after the vote on Saturday, daring his opponents to force a vote on his speakership as a result.
McCarthy’s allies are tired of the antics of the nihilists. “I don’t think he’s lost any strength. But if someone wants to do this [offer a motion to vacate the speaker’s chair], just come on. I’m tired of talking about this fight,” said Rules Chair Tom Cole (R-Okla.). “They didn’t have a candidate last time, they don’t have a candidate this time. None of the people that would vote against him have the guts to run against him.”
It took 15 ballots last January to elect McCarthy speaker. The deal he made with the nihilists lasted about six months — until the debt limit bill. But the reality is, as Rep. Cole points out, there is literally no one else who can get even close to a majority of Republicans for the speakership. Certainly none of the nihilists.
Passing the funding bill was a big victory for the Democrats.
It was a major victory for Democrats, who had uniformly opposed previous attempts by Republicans this week to pass measures that would have dramatically cut spending. It came only after McCarthy tried repeatedly to craft legislation that would attract enough House Republicans by slashing spending, falling short despite giving in to many of the demands of his most hard-line conservative members.
“We’re on the path to avoiding an extreme MAGA Republican shutdown,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said after the House passed the short-term extension. “It was a victory for the American people and a complete and total surrender by right-wing extremists who throughout the year have tried to hijack the Congress.”
As befitting nihilists always and everywhere, the House Republican rabid right-wingers didn’t have a plan except to oppose everything McCarthy offered. Even when they essentially got everything they wanted — more severe budget cuts than were agreed to in June between Biden and McCarthy and enhanced border security — they still refused to support the proposal. And their threats to unseat McCarthy got louder and more strident.
McCarthy will never be able to completely sideline the extreme MAGA faction of the GOP House caucus. But along with less extreme, more mainstream Republicans working with McCarthy, their obstructionism will be somewhat blunted.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member