Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida said he backs Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana to replace ousted Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy even though he did not vote for the House majority leader during a GOP caucus.
On Wednesday, Gaetz expressed support for the House GOP’s nomination of Scalise after the Louisiana congressman beat Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio in a 113-99 secret vote.
“I’m excited for him,” Gaetz told reporters. “I can’t wait to go vote for Steve Scalise. Long live Speaker Scalise.”
Q: What’s your reaction now that Scalise has the votes for Speaker elect?
Rep. Matt Gaetz: “I’m excited for him. I can’t wait to go vote for him. Long live Speaker Scalise.” pic.twitter.com/ejZFfFOX9b
— CSPAN (@cspan) October 11, 2023
Gaetz revealed that Jordan was his first choice but said he backs Scalise since the Ohio congressman lost the internal GOP vote.
“I voted for Jordan,” the 41-year-old attorney wrote on the social media platform X.
“Now Jordan is for Scalise,” he said. “Both are an upgrade over McCarthy.”
I voted for Jordan.
Now Jordan is for Scalise.
Both are an upgrade over McCarthy. pic.twitter.com/1rA0qHMYRA
— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) October 11, 2023
On Oct. 3, McCarthy was removed as speaker of the House after Gaetz led a revolt to depose him, citing his failure to act on the promises he had made to gain GOP support to secure the role.
Today @SpeakerMcCarthy improved compliance with the January Agreement by holding a term limits vote, which sadly failed.
There remain significant areas for needed improvement. pic.twitter.com/m0dbmxx5Ab
— Rep. Matt Gaetz (@RepMattGaetz) September 28, 2023
Shortly after McCarthy’s ouster, Jordan and Scalise announced bids to run for speaker.
Jordan was favored by former President Donald Trump, the de facto leader of the Republican Party.
Last week, Gaetz said he’d be “honored to vote for either of these men on the floor.”
“Both of these men would represent a monumental step forward for the Republican conference,” he told Fox News. “I don’t believe there is a single conservative in the country who would not believe we are in a better position with either of them.”
On social media, Gaetz was peppered with questions about his support for Scalise, whom some claim is a carbon copy of McCarthy.
113 RINOS part from Jim Jordan. What a disgrace — Scalise is McCarthy in the flesh. It’s time for the conservatives in the party to rise up once again and reject RINOS from leadership! #TheGreatAmericaShow https://t.co/hwfhdCP8s1
— Lou Dobbs (@LouDobbs) October 11, 2023
John Boehner = Paul Ryan = Kevin McCarthy = Steve Scalise.
The Republican Party hates their voters.
— Catturd ™ (@catturd2) October 11, 2023
“I question @MattGaetz supporting McCarthy 2.0,” one commenter wrote on X. “Something is off…”
I question @mattgaetz supporting McCarthy 2.0.
Was McCarthy right , that Gates just hated him
and this was a personal vendetta?Something is off…
— LG4LG ☦️🍏801🕊 🇺🇸🇮🇱 (@LG4LG) October 11, 2023
So, @mattgaetz got McCarthy out just to nominate his proxy in his place…. 🤦🏻♀️ #GOP pic.twitter.com/eLnaqiMJgn
— PatrioticMamaaa (@patrioticmamaaa) October 11, 2023
@RepMattGaetz is a joke. Excited to vote for a guy that is no different than the guy he voted out 🤡
— John Paul Jaramillo Jr (@JPJaramillo88) October 11, 2023
In response to conservative skepticism, Gaetz pointed out that while Scalise was not his first choice, the Louisiana congressman is much better than McCarthy.
Scalise > McCarthy
— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) October 11, 2023
I’m certain Steve is an upgrade.
He was also not my first choice.
— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) October 11, 2023
We got rid of McCarthy, who repeatedly lied to us.
And we will get an upgrade at the position of House Speaker.
We will get someone more conservative. https://t.co/uzEY86euFW
— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) October 12, 2023
A House floor vote will soon take place to decide the next speaker, pitting Scalise against House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the Democratic nominee for the role.
