Former Republican House Speaker Newt Gingrich called the eight Republican members of Congress who joined with all Democrats to vote out Speaker Kevin McCarthy "opportunists" during a radio show Wednesday.
"We saw eight guys who decided that they were superior to the 210 [other] Republicans they were opposed by, and so they went and sided with the Democrats to basically defeat the Republicans," Gingrich said Wednesday during the "Cats & Cosby" radio show on New York radio station 77 WABC.
"I think that it is a terrible precedent, and I think it poses a huge challenge to the next speaker of the House."
Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., introduced the motion to vacate the chair Monday, and a vote was taken on the floor of the House Tuesday with McCarthy losing the position 216-210, including Gaetz and seven other Republicans voting to remove him, NPR reported.
It is the first time in United States history a speaker of the House was removed under the provision.
Gaetz said following the vote that he brought the motion because McCarthy did not fulfill promises he made during his contentious election to the job in January by working with Democrats to pass the recent continuing resolution to fund the government through Nov. 17 and not demanding more spending cuts in the bill.
"Chaos is Speaker McCarthy," Gaetz said during a press conference Tuesday. "Chaos is somebody who we cannot trust with their word."
Gingrich, however, said that there were cuts in two different versions of the spending resolution that the eight GOP members voted "no" on before the bill that eventually passed was agreed to with Democrats.
"These aren't real conservatives," Gingrich said. "These are opportunists who are totally irresponsible."
In a Washington Post op-ed Wednesday, Gingrich called for Gaetz to be expelled from Congress for leading the charge to oust McCarthy.
"Gaetz's motion to remove McCarthy should have been swiftly defeated, but it wasn't; he should still be expelled from the House Republican conference," Gingrich wrote. "House Republicans have far more important things to do than entertain one member's ego."
Gingrich said that Gaetz made the move only to gain attention and do fundraising.
"But Gaetz has gone beyond regular drama," Gingrich wrote. "He is destroying the House GOP's ability to govern and draw a sharp contrast with the policy disasters of [President Joe Biden's] administration."
Charles Kim ✉
Charles Kim, a Newsmax general assignment writer, is an award-winning journalist with more than 30 years in reporting on news and politics.
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