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The House recessed Tuesday after a historic vote that ejected Kevin McCarthy as speaker, allowing lawmakers to huddle privately to hash out a plan to either try to reelect him or find another candidate who can win a majority of Republican votes.
Rep. Patrick McHenry, North Carolina Republican and chair of the House Financial Services Committee, was designated as the temporary speaker. Mr. McCarthy chose him this year to serve in the event of an emergency. Top House aides said he has authority only to conduct elections for speaker.
It’s unclear what the impact of Mr. McCarthy’s removal will have on House floor legislation or whether any further business can be conducted without a permanent speaker in the chair.
Mr. McCarthy was pushed out on a 216-210 vote. Only eight Republicans voted to remove Mr. McCarthy, but all House Democrats joined them in the floor vote.
It was the first time in history that a House speaker was tossed out.
Rep. Matt Gaetz orchestrated Mr. McCarthy’s removal. The Florida Republican said he would not run to replace Mr. McCarthy and was unsure who could win the majority needed to take the gavel.
Mr. McCarthy lost, said Mr. Gaetz, because he made promises over reining in government spending that he failed to uphold.
“This represents the ripping off of the Band-Aid, and that’s what we need to get back on track,” Mr. Gaetz said after the vote.
• Susan Ferrechio can be reached at sferrechio@washingtontimes.com.
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