McCarthy's revenge
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Pass the popcorn.
https://www.politico.com/news/2024/02/01/kevin-mccarthy-vengeance-challengers-00138897
Kevin McCarthy is not done trying to exact revenge on the fellow Republicans who ended his Hill career.
After a devastating ejection from the speakership that he spent 16 years pursuing, the California Republican and his allies are mobilizing to oust the eight GOP lawmakers who joined Democrats to depose him.
A top McCarthy ally, Brian O. Walsh, is overseeing an attempt to recruit primary challengers to take on members of the infamous “Gaetz Eight” — the Capitol’s nickname for Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and seven Republicans who supported his fire-McCarthy push — according to six people familiar with the plans who were granted anonymity to discuss them.
The McCarthy revenge campaign is ready to marshal the former speaker’s considerable donor network on behalf of Republican primary candidates who are deemed strong enough to pose a credible threat to one of the eight.
“These traitors chose to side with Nancy Pelosi, AOC and over 200 Democrats to undermine the institution, their fellow Republicans and a duly elected Speaker,” Walsh said in a statement. “There must be consequences for that decision.”
Behind the scenes, McCarthy allies have identified three of the Gaetz Eight as the most vulnerable in primaries and thus, the ripest targets: Reps. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.), Bob Good (R-Va.) and Eli Crane (R-Ariz.). Mace and Good already have strong challengers, but Crane still lacks a compelling prospective candidate to take him on.
That quiet work shows McCarthy’s appetite for payback remains intense, even months after his October ouster as speaker and December departure from Congress. It also illustrates that even out of office, the former speaker and his supporters can make life miserable for his detractors — a further sign that the House GOP power struggle between burn-it-down hardliners and more establishment conservatives is alive and well.
Walsh is acting with McCarthy’s blessing. While the former speaker is not involved in the day-to-day work of the project, he is briefed on its progress, as are key donors, according to a person familiar with the effort who was granted anonymity to discuss it.
McCarthy’s closest allies say his eight defectors should fear his influence from afar. He made clear even before retiring from Congress how angry he was, arguing that Gaetz belongs in jail and getting into an alleged physical altercation with another of the eight, Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.).
“One of the most dangerous things that you could do is have an untethered McCarthy,” said Rep. Garret Graves (R-La.), a former top lieutenant of the ex-speaker. “In terms of some of the people that have done stupid things over the past several months.”
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https://www.businessinsider.com/matt-gaetz-primary-mike-bost-screaming-darren-bailey-2024-2
Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida is seeking to end the career of a fellow GOP congressman who once screamed at him on the House floor.
Gaetz is endorsing Darren Bailey — a former Illinois state representative who was the GOP's unsuccessful nominee for governor in 2022 — in his primary campaign against Rep. Mike Bost.
And
The endorsement was first reported by POLITICO. Bost told the outlet that he "never considered Matt a threat."
"I considered him an ass, but never a threat," said Bost.
LOL
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https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/11/politics/kevin-mccarthy-foes-blowback/index.html
Donors no longer want to contribute to their campaigns. Primary opponents are lining up to take them out. And some of them have been ex-communicated from caucuses on Capitol Hill.
The eight House Republicans who took the unprecedented step of removing Kevin McCarthy from the speakership are facing blowback, both in Washington and back home. It’s a sign that even four months after the historic move, emotions are still raw inside a GOP conference that is continuing to reel from McCarthy’s ouster.
Reps. Nancy Mace of South Carolina and Bob Good of Virginia have arguably received the most incoming fire, with both now facing serious primary threats as they gear up for reelection. And Rep. Matt Rosendale, who recently jumped into the US Senate race in Montana, is facing headwinds in GOP circles — in part because of his vote to boot McCarthy — as top Republicans fear he will cost them a pivotal seat.
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https://therecount.com/watch/former-speaker-mccarthy-accuses-rep/2645894075
Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) took a dig at Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) on Tuesday, accusing the congressman of embellishing his relationship with former president Donald Trump.
“I don't know how close you probably think the president is to Gaetz, but you should figure that out,” McCarthy said, when a reporter asked about conversations Trump may have had with Gaetz about McCarthy’s ouster as Speaker last October.
Gaetz spearheaded the motion, which seven other House Republicans backed, to vote with Democrats to end McCarthy’s speakership. Gaetz accused the former Speaker of working with Democrats after the House passed an annual spending package to keep the federal government open.
McCarthy was then pressed on Trump’s relationship with Gaetz, who frequently portrays himself as being close with the former president:
Reporter: “They're not actually that close? ... Gaetz makes it out to be like they're...”
“I'm sure. Gaetz probably makes a lot out. He probably lies about who he sleeps with, too,” McCarthy said, seemingly making a reference to the House Ethics Committee’s investigation into whether Gaetz had sex with a minor while serving in Congress.
LOL
