On Friday, Donald Trump allies in the House of Representatives pressed Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) to force a floor vote to oust Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and install Trump as a replacement after Pelosi blocked two Republicans from serving on the special committee investigating the Trump-fueled Jan. 6 insurrection, The Hill reports.
“We, the House Freedom Caucus, respectfully request that you … bring up a privileged motion by July 31, 2021 to vacate the chair and Nancy Pelosi’s authoritarian reign as Speaker of the House,” the Freedom Caucus wrote to McCarthy.
In the letter, the Freedom Caucus also cited other reasons why Pelosi should be removed: She has allowed remote, proxy voting by lawmakers due to the coronavirus pandemic, and she had metal detectors installed at the entrances to the House floor after the Jan. 6 attack
“Speaker Pelosi’s tenure is destroying the House of Representatives and our ability to faithfully represent the people we are here to serve,” the group wrote.
But their main complaint was her decision this week to essentially veto two of McCarthy’s five GOP picks for the Jan. 6 select committee: Reps. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) and Jim Jordan (R-Ohio). Both are die-hard Trump loyalists and Jordan was the founding chairman of the Freedom Caucus.
In response, a furious McCarthy said Republicans would boycott participating in the committee, which kicks off its first hearing Tuesday.
“Speaker Pelosi’s refusal to seat Rep. Jim Jordan and Rep. Jim Banks on the Select Committee to Investigate January 6 is intolerable. … Republicans under your leadership must show the American people that we will act to protect our ability to represent their interests.”
The plot by Trump loyalists to oust Pelosi hues closely with a far-fetched, seven-point plan to reinstate Trump as president “in days, not years.” Cards outlining the strategy were made by a group called Patriots Soar and distributed this month to people attending a Conservative Political Action Conference gathering in Dallas.
The plan calls for ousting Pelosi, second in line to the presidency, from the Speakership, installing Trump as Speaker, and impeaching President Biden and Vice President Harris, allowing Trump to ascend to the presidency.
Of course, the move is a cheap political stunt because such a vote —known as a “motion to vacate the chair”— would be quickly rejected by Democrats, who control the majority, and some moderate Republicans.
But the one-page letter from the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus represents a test for McCarthy, who likely will need Freedom Caucus support in his quest to secure 218 votes and become speaker if Republicans win back the House in 2022.
As noted by The Hill, “the group of Trump sycophants derailed McCarthy’s bid to be the speaker in 2015, when Ohio Republican John Boehner abruptly resigned from the job after a Freedom Caucus leader threatened to force a similar floor vote to oust him from power” for not acceding to their absurd demands.
McCarthy did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
