Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy told Fox News on Friday he is not considering resigning his congressional seat after being ousted from the speakership earlier this week.
Speaking with Fox’s Bret Baier following a Politico report that he was weighing a congressional exit, McCarthy flatly said he was not leaving.
Politico had cited “two people familiar with matter” in its reporting that McCarthy would stay in his seat at least until a new speaker was chosen next week “in order to help the party steady itself after a seismic shakeup.”
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Representative Kevin McCarthy, a Republican from California, at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2023. (Nathan Howard/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
McCarthy narrowly lost a 216-210 vote on Tuesday to remove him as House speaker after Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., introduced a motion to vacate the role. Gaetz had threatened to do so following a breakdown between Republican factions over efforts to prevent a government shutdown the previous week.
McCarthy was succeeded to Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., a temporary replacement until the House votes on a permanent one next week.
Three names have emerged as viable replacements for McCarthy, including House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and Rep. Kevin Hern, R-Okla.
Matt Gaetz, Republican of Florida, speaks to the press outside the US Capitol as the House votes on a continuing resolution in the House in Washington, DC on September 30, 2023. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)
Former President Donald Trump was floated as a replacement, and told Fox News Digital on Thursday that he was open to temporarily accepting the role in order to help bridge divides between members of the party. He later threw his support behind Jordan.
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