Rep. Maxwell Frost hinted that former Speaker Kevin McCarthy may have brought his fate upon himself by his “bring it on” comment and his attitude of not backing down.
“McCarthy said ’bring it on’ and it was brought on. It was brought on very quickly,” Mr. Frost, Florida Democrat, said on MSNBC’s “The Last Word” Wednesday night. “And unfortunately we made history, and look, this is a solemn moment, right?”
On Tuesday, the House voted to oust Mr. McCarthy from his position, a motion brought by fellow Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz. Eight Republicans in total joined all of the House Democrats in voting to remove him.
Mr. McCarthy of California had dared Mr. Gaetz to “bring it on.” After the Floridian filed the motion, he responded: “Just did.”
“The House of Representatives cannot take on any new legislation as of now; all we can do is focus on electing a new speaker of the House,” Mr. Frost said. “And guess what? The rule that made it so McCarthy right now isn’t the speaker is still the rule.”
The Floridian pointed out this wasn’t the first time friction existed between Republicans and their speaker. He referenced former Speakers John A. Boehner and Newt Gingrich, both of whom resigned from Congress after they were worn down by their party.
“We all knew this was coming,” Mr. Frost said. “It wasn’t a matter of if; it was a matter of when. And now it’s happening right now.”
He added, “We’re less than 45 days away from another government shutdown. We have a budget to get through. We have a lot of work to do, and the Republican Party has imploded from the inside out.”
Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio and Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana are two Republicans campaigning to become the next speaker, while Rep. Patrick McHenry of North Carolina is interim speaker.
The House could vote on who will take over next week.
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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