Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) said she would support getting rid of the mechanism by which Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) was removed as House speaker — under one condition.
In a post to X on Thursday, the congresswoman said she is “willing to ditch” the “motion to vacate” with Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) in that position.
“The House has a lot of work ahead, let’s get this over with and take our country back!” she added.
I’m willing to ditch the Motion To Vacate with @Jim_Jordan as Speaker.
The House has a lot of work ahead, let’s get this over with and take our country back!
— Lauren Boebert (@laurenboebert) October 5, 2023
The “motion to vacate the chair” is a parliamentary tool that has rarely been used throughout the history of the United States.
After lawmakers raised the threshold to require a majority of either party to bring a motion to vacate to the House floor in 2019 — as Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) began her second stint as speaker — the House rules package approved for this session of Congress restored the ability of a single member to trigger the process.
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) filed a “motion to vacate the chair” this week after the GOP-controlled House passed a short-term spending bill to avert a government shutdown. Eight Republicans joined with Democrats in a 216-210 vote that ousted McCarthy, who later said he would not run again for the speaker’s gavel. Boebert voted against removing McCarthy.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) and Jordan, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, have announced candidacies for the speakership on the GOP side. Democrats are likely to rally behind someone such as Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY).
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There has also been some chatter about former President Donald Trump taking on the role, as the Constitution does not require a speaker to be a sitting member of the House, even while Trump is running a 2024 campaign for a second term in the White House.
A simple majority is needed to secure victory in a chamber-wide vote. Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC) is serving as a temporary speaker in the interim.
At least one other House Republican — Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-FL) — said he would not support any candidate until there is a commitment to reform the motion to vacate.
“The coup against Speaker McCarthy was DESPICABLE & must never happen again. No one can govern effectively while being threatened by fringe hostage takers,” Gimenez added in a post to X.
Gaetz responded with a post, saying, “So the way moderates want to punish me is by making it harder to remove Speaker Jordan or Speaker Scalise? OH NO! ANYTHING BUT THAT!!!!”
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), in comments to reporters on Wednesday, described the “motion to vacate” as being unproductive and advised the next speaker to do away with it.
“It makes the speaker’s job impossible, and the American people expect us to have a functioning government,” McConnell said.