There’s a 2018 video of Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) that is coming back to haunt him.
Recently, Gaetz led the group to oust Rep. Kevin McCarthy as speaker of the house.
You may remember that in 2018, there was a movement to oust then-Speaker Paul Ryan.
“Here’s the problem: If we take Paul Ryan off the field right now, instead of being able to finish strong in the 115th Congress, we will shatter into a bunch of factions fighting against each other for power,” Gaetz said at the time. “We’ve got enough of that in Washington already. Paul Ryan can be a caretaker of the speakership. We can have a leadership election. We could go into the midterms strong. And I don’t think they’re pushing him out early if he doesn’t want to go, is in any way advantageous.”
Gaetz in 2018:
“If we talk Paul Ryan off the field right now, instead of being able to finish strong, we will shatter into a bunch of factions fighting against each other for power.” pic.twitter.com/1yOxe3GhML— Caleb Smith (@CalebJSmith) October 3, 2023
Paul Ryan would not have released the 1/6 tapes to Tucker Carlson like McCarthy did, who even had the dedicated support of Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Greene.
While the Speaker of the House mess gets sorted out, the impeachment inquiry is paused.
What has happened has happened but the Republicans better have a plan.
After being ousted, McCarthy said that he believed Gaetz went after him because he refused to intervene in an Ethics Investigation.
MCCARTHY: “You all know Matt Gaetz. You know it was personal. It had nothing to do about spending. […] Everything he accused somebody of, he was doing. It all was about getting attention from you.”
“Regardless of what you think, I’ve seen the texts. It was all about his ethics… pic.twitter.com/QI6xoto6ls
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) October 4, 2023
Gaetz refuted the notion but when pressed side stepped his answer (the clip below is long but we wanted to provide as much context as possible).
🚨Matt Gaetz responds to Kevin McCarthy’s statement after being removed as Speaker pic.twitter.com/1JpZw7BMfL
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) October 4, 2023
As to the feud who knows what’s going on, but it shouldn’t have come to this. Both sides should have worked together to keep things together so they could get the work done for the people they represent.
Look folks, I’m a realist and we know how the swamp operates look what happened to Madison Cawthorne. Who knows what is going on with the Florida Congressman’s ethics investigation but let’s just say I have a feeling he’s going to get hammered now.
