House leaderless after stunning Kevin McCarthy ouster: Washington Photos of the Week
House leaderless after stunning Kevin McCarthy ouster: Washington Photos of the Week
October 07, 2023 04:00 AM
The House of Representatives remains paralyzed after Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) was ousted as speaker on Tuesday when a group of GOP rebels joined with all Democrats to remove him from his post.
McCarthy, who won the gavel after 15 rounds of floor voting in January, became the first speaker in history to lose his job by a motion to vacate. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) led the group of eight Republicans who voted to remove McCarthy, citing broken promises such as working with Democrats to avoid an Oct. 1 government shutdown.
Business in the House is at a standstill until a new speaker can be elected by a House vote, which is slated for next week. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) are vying for the job, but it’s unclear how either could secure the 218 floor votes to win.
Here’s a look at Capitol scenes from the unprecedented week of Oct. 2 captured by Washington Examiner photographer Graeme Jennings.
McCarthy is out after Gaetz-led rebellion
Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) holds a press conference late evening on Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2023, after being ousted as speaker. McCarthy was removed from the role by a simple majority vote.
GRAEME JENNINGS
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) is mobbed by reporters right before a vote on whether to remove him as speaker, brought by hard-right members of the party, on Capitol Hill, on Oct. 3, 2023, in Washington, D.C.
Graeme Jennings/Graeme Jennings
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) walks outside the U.S. Capitol followed by reporters following a vote to remove Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) from the speakership, on Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2023. In an unprecedented turn of events, McCarthy was ousted by a simple majority. Gaetz, a fierce critic of McCarthy, spearheaded the motion to remove him.
Graeme Jennings/Graeme Jennings
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) is surrounded by cameras and reporters as he fields questions from the media, on Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2023. Gaetz filed the successful motion to vacate the speakership against Kevin McCarthy (R-CA).
Graeme Jennings/Graeme Jennings
Rep. Garret Graves (R-LA) speaks to reporters in the Will Rogers Corridor in the Capitol on Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023. Graves heavily criticized lawmakers such as Rep. Matt Gatez (R-FL), for fundraising after filing a motion to vacate Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) as speaker.
Graeme Jennings/Washington Examiner
Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) walks outside the U.S. Capitol holding her grandson following the motion to vacate Speaker Kevin McCarthy, on Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2023. This week Boebert said she is “willing to ditch” the House’s motion to vacate rule, in order to support Rep. Jim Jordan’s (R-OH) bid for speaker.
Graeme Jennings/Graeme Jennings
Meanwhile, in the Senate…
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) talks to reporters following the Senate Republican policy luncheon at the U.S. Capitol on Oct. 4, 2023. When asked about the removal of Kevin McCarthy from the speakership, McConnell said, “I hope whoever the next speaker is gets rid of the motion to vacate.”
Graeme Jennings/Graeme Jennings
Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) leaves a Democratic policy luncheon on Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023. New details have emerged about Nadine Arslanian, the wife of Menendez, who struck and killed a pedestrian with her car in December 2018 without being charged. Federal prosecutors reference this event as a factor in the indictment of the senator.
