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House Republicans turned on one of their own Friday, with one lawmaker-elect angrily challenging Matt Gaetz of Florida as he nominated Jim Jordan for speaker in order to block party leader Kevin McCarthy from taking the gavel.
As the House attempted for a 12th time to elect a speaker before moving on to other business, Gaetz — one of six Republicans dubbed the “Never Kevins” — rose to nominate Jordan of Ohio, who has staunchly backed McCarthy (R-Calif.) and expressed no interest in the post.
“You only earned the position of speaker of the House if you can get the votes,” Gaetz said. “Mr. McCarthy doesn’t have the votes today. He will not have the votes tomorrow and he will not have the votes next week, next month, next year.”
As Gaetz spoke, some Republicans began to ostentatiously walk out of the chamber, while others began to audibly take issue with his remarks.
