Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy its being attacked by far-right House Republicans and being mocked as their “victim” as he openly admits to the press that he doesn’t “quite know what” they want just days before what appears to be an increasingly-likely federal government shutdown that will lay at the feet of his members including U.S. Reps. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA).
“It’s a good thing I love a challenge,” Speaker McCarthy told reporters Monday morning (video below) as he slammed extremist members of the House Republican Conference. “Because every day is gonna be a challenge.”
“We got a long week. We’re not going on September 30 yet,” he said, noting the end of the federal fiscal year when the government will run out of money unless the House and Senate appropriate more funds and President J0e Biden signs that legislation into law.
“But the one thing I will tell everybody, I’ve never seen anybody win a shutdown,” said McCarthy, knowing that Republicans will be blamed if there is one. “They only put the power in the hands of the administration.”
“If you want to secure the border then pass Homeland,” he said, the bill funding Homeland Security.
“You want to make America strong and secure, pass the DOD approps bill,” he continued, referring to legislation to fund the Dept. of Defense.
“If you’re not willing to pass appropriations bills, and you’re not willing to pass a continuing resolution to allow you to pass the rest of appropriation bills, and you don’t want an omnibus, I don’t quite know what you want,” McCarthy admitted to reporters about his House Republicans who appear prepared or pushing for a government shutdown.
Also referring to the far-right Republicans was attorney, legal analyst, and political commentator Brad Moss.
“Leopards Eating People’s Faces Party takes another victim,” he wrote in response to the Speaker’s remarks.
The Leopards Eating People’s Faces Party is a meme that has been described as a “parody of regretful voters who vote for cruel and unjust policies (and politicians) and are then surprised when their own lives become worse as a result. It has been commonly used to parody regretful Brexit and Trump voters.”
Former Republican and former U.S. Congressman Joe Walsh offered a simpler explanation to McCarthy: “Revenge for Trump. That’s what most of your caucus wants. Retribution.”
Congressman Gaetz, Congresswoman Greene, U.S. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL), and others are posting opposition to passing legislation to keep the government running.
Watch McCarthy below and see the social media posts above or all at this link.