Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) is brushing off Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s (R-Calif.) announcement of an impeachment inquiry into President Biden as a “baby step,” warning he would try to force a vote on ousting the Speaker from his post if he does not meet a swatch of demands.
In a fiery speech on the House floor an hour after McCarthy’s announcement, Gaetz — who is known to spar with the Speaker — called the Speaker’s remarks a “rushed” and “rattled performance,” adding that it “isn’t real.”
“Moments ago, Speaker McCarthy endorsed an impeachment inquiry. This is a baby step following weeks of pressure from House conservatives to do more. We must move faster,” Gaetz said on the House floor.
Gaetz has been a vocal advocate for impeaching Biden, going so far as to threaten forcing votes on ousting Biden administration officials. In an interview with conservative radio host Todd Starnes last week, Gaetz warned McCarthy that he would force a vote on ousting the Speaker if he “stands in our way” on impeachment.
But the Florida Republican amped up that criticism on Tuesday, laying out a number of demands for McCarthy — and threatening to bring a motion to vacate the chair if he does not comply.
“I rise today to serve notice: Mr. Speaker, you are out of compliance with the agreement that allowed you to assume this role,” Gaetz said in his floor speech. “The path forward for the House of Representatives is to either bring you into immediate, total compliance or remove you pursuant to a motion to vacate the chair.”
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