GOP rep says McCarthy ‘should be concerned’ about motion to vacate

Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) said House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) “should be concerned” about a motion to remove him after the debt ceiling deal he struck with President Biden moves through Congress.

McCarthy has said he is “not at all” concerned about being removed from his position following the conservative backlash to the debt agreement.

But Buck said in an interview Wednesday on CNN that McCarthy should be.

“Yeah, I think he should be concerned,” Buck said about McCarthy’s future as Speaker, adding that he was not saying enough votes exist to remove him from the role. 

“And so, after this vote — and he will win the vote tonight — but after this vote, we will have discussions about whether there should be a motion to vacate or not,” he continued. 

Rep. Dan Bishop (R-N.C.) on Tuesday became the first House Republican to publicly declare his support for a motion to vacate McCarthy, which would force a vote on whether he continues to preside over the House. 

Buck on Wednesday reiterated claims from a group of far-right lawmakers who say McCarthy broke his word in the agreement that sealed their initial support for his Speakership.

Buck and others say McCarthy promised that he would push for government funding at fiscal 2022 appropriations levels as Speaker, but his deal with Biden would keep nondefense spending at 2023 levels for the next fiscal year and allow a 1 percent increase in 2025. 

Buck said the difference is a “major change for a lot of people.” 

Since McCarthy won the Speakership in January after a historic 15 ballots, Republicans have largely dismissed questions about whether they would remove him from his post. But the most hard-line conservatives have expressed frustration that the deal McCarthy reached does not do more to cut spending. 

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) warned Tuesday in an interview with Newsmax that if the deal were to pass in the House without a majority of Republicans in favor, an “immediate” motion to vacate would follow. 

Under House rules, only one member would need to make a motion to vacate to require a vote on whether McCarthy could remain as Speaker.