Gaetz’s feud with McCarthy may deny Democrats kingmaker status.

As the threat of a government shutdown looms, Republican Representative Matt Gaetz has approached Democratic lawmakers with a surprising proposition. Gaetz, who has been openly critical of Speaker Kevin McCarthy, expressed his desire to find new leadership that is honest, trustworthy, and follows proper procedures. He suggested two alternative Republicans who exemplify these qualities and tried to gauge whether the Democrat he spoke to would support ousting McCarthy. The Democrat revealed that there have been discussions about power-sharing agreements and policy ideas, and Gaetz has been reaching out to Democrats across the ideological spectrum. However, Gaetz insisted that he has not offered any concessions to Democrats and that his focus is not on working with them but on finding a new leader. Other Republicans, including moderate and pragmatic members, have also been engaging with Democrats to seek their support in preventing a government shutdown and building consensus to save McCarthy’s leadership if a motion to remove him from the speaker’s chair is brought forward. With Democrats now seen as a pivotal constituency for the warring Republican party, they are starting to consider what they can gain from a difficult decision—whether to save McCarthy or align with his opponents to remove him and cause chaos in the House. Nonetheless, Democratic leaders are urging caution among their members, wanting to avoid taking a stance preemptively due to the significant impact a misstep could have on the House and the party.

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