Republican rebels plot leadership coup over deal to keep US government running
A last-ditch deal to keep the US government running has infuriated hard-right Republicans, who have issued a bold threat to their leader Kevin McCarthy.
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Republican rebels are threatening to blast their leader from his post within days after he struck a stunning last-ditch deal with Democrats to keep the US government open.
Speaker Kevin McCarthy may now have to rely on his political opponents to keep his job, amid fury among hard-right Republicans over the stopgap funding deal to avert a US government shutdown that would have sparked chaos nationwide.
Florida Republican Matt Gaetz, the chief agitator to Mr McCarthy’s leadership, capped a weekend of drama by confirming he would file a motion to oust him this week.
“Nobody trusts Kevin McCarthy,” he said.
“I think we need to rip off the Band-Aid … I think we need to move on with new leadership that can be trustworthy.”
Mr McCarthy claimed the speakership of the House of Representatives in January after a five-day fight on the floor of the chamber that left the Congress paralysed for longer than any time since 1859.
As part of his deal with rebels including Mr Gaetz to take the leadership role, Mr McCarthy made several commitments which they believe he breached during negotiations to avoid the shutdown.
All but one Democrat voted for Mr McCarthy’s bill on Saturday (local time), just hours before the shutdown was due to kick in, because it did not include spending cuts or new measures to restrict the flow of migrants into the US which had been key Republican demands.
“This agreement that he made with Democrats to really blow past a lot of the spending guardrails we’d set up is a last straw,” Mr Gaetz told CNN.
There was also no new money for Ukraine, despite President Joe Biden seeking $US24bn in extra financial support for the war against Russia.
Mr Gaetz accused Mr McCarthy of striking a “secret deal” with Democrats to provide support for Ukraine in a separate bill to be considered soon.
The Republican speaker – who commands a razor-thin majority with 221 members in the 435-seat chamber – said the dispute with Mr Gaetz was “personal”.
“I’ll survive,” Mr McCarthy said.
“Bring it on, let’s get it over with, and let’s start governing.”
But with a core group of about 20 Republicans having stymied Mr McCarthy’s leadership, he may need support from the Democrats to stay in charge.
Leading New York Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez flagged that she would “absolutely” cast a vote to remove the “very weak Speaker” – unless he was willing to make concessions to her party to save his job.
“I don’t think we give up votes for free,” she said.
UKRAINE DUDDED IN SURPRISING DEAL
Ukraine has been dudded in a last-ditch deal to prevent the US government shutting down with just hours to spare.
Amid mounting opposition among Republicans to ongoing assistance for Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s illegal invasion, the critical funding was cut out of a bill that was rushed through Congress to avert a shutdown before the 12am deadline on Sunday (local time).
The stopgap measure will fund government services for 45 days, meaning troops and public servants will continue to be paid, travellers will avoid major delays at airports and support payments will keep flowing to poor families.
But Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s deal with the Democrats has put his leadership on the line, after rebels in his party stood firm in their push to shut the government down, backed by former president Donald Trump.
“If somebody wants to make a motion against me, bring it,” Mr McCarthy said.
“There has to be an adult in the room. I am going to govern with what is best for this country.”
At the height of the drama, an office building at the US Capitol was evacuated after Democrat congressman Jamaal Bowman pulled the fire alarm, later claiming that he thought it would open a locked door.
The incident unfolded as his party briefly tried to delay a vote on the hurried stopgap bill, prompting anger from Republicans who demanded an investigation and threatened to expel him from Congress.
A shutdown had appeared all but certain on Saturday morning after hard-right Republicans stifled several temporary funding proposals.
The chaos even forced former president Jimmy Carter’s 99th birthday party to be brought forward because it was being held at his federally funded presidential library which would otherwise have had to close.
But in a stunning pivot, Mr McCarthy pushed through a bill – without support for Ukraine or measures to bolster the southern US border amid an influx of migrants – with the support of all but one Democrat in the House of Representatives.
Mike Quigley, the only Democrat to vote against the bill and the co-chair of the Congressional Ukraine Caucus, said it was “a victory for Putin and his sympathisers”.
It came just over a week after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited Washington DC to press his case for further support with President Joe Biden and congressional leaders.
Top Democrat Hakeem Jeffries, the House Minority Leader, said the short-term budget bill avoided steep funding cuts previously proposed by Republicans.
“It was a victory for the American people and a complete and total surrender by right-wing extremists who throughout the year have tried to hijack the Congress,” he said.
The bill was due to be signed into law by Mr Biden on Saturday night local time after passing the Senate.
A White House spokesman said the President – who has sought $US24bn (A$37bn) in further aid for Ukraine – expected Mr McCarthy would soon bring a separate bill to authorise the funding.
NEGOTIATIONS DOWN TO THE WIRE
Earlier, it was feared America would be plunged into chaos with government funding due to run out, leaving millions of troops and public servants without pay, travellers facing lengthy delays and poor families cut off from support.
With the party holding a razor-thin majority in the House of Representatives, the rebels vowed to block any budget that boosts funding for Ukraine, jeopardising its fight against Russia’s invasion.
A shutdown would have meant the temporary closure of national parks and museums, delayed disaster relief programs, and a pause on government-funded research.
Some federal staff would continue working without pay, but the White House warned of widespread disruptions including “significant delays” and “longer wait times” at airports.
Congress had to pass an annual appropriations bill by October 1, and while US President Joe Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy struck a spending deal months ago which increased the US debt ceiling and was supposed to avoid a shutdown, the Republican leader later reneged amid a widening split in his party.
Last week, he accused his colleagues of wanting to “burn the whole place down”, although when asked on Friday if he expected a shutdown, Mr McCarthy said: “No, I’m saying we work through this and get this done.”
The Republican rebels have been egged on by former president Donald Trump – the party’s leading contender for next year’s election – who declared in an all-caps social media post: “Unless you get everything, shut it down!”
Republican congressman Don Bacon told Politico of his colleagues: “Some of these folks would vote against the Bible because there’s not enough Jesus in it.”
The Senate has already passed a bipartisan measure that would keep the government afloat until November 17, but the inclusion of $US6bn (A$9bn) in aid for Ukraine meant it was rejected by the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, the chamber’s top Democrat, blasted Mr McCarthy for buckling to “the whims and desires of a handful of hard-right extremists”.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said: “A lapse in funding for Ukraine or any significant cut would absolutely have a negative effect on their ability to succeed.”
But Mr McCarthy accused Democrats of “picking Ukraine over Americans”, as he pushed for further cash to stop the influx of migrants. Republican congressman Chip Roy said any deal that failed to secure the southern US border would cause “internecine intraparty war”.
Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell warned shutdowns had “always been a loser” for his party as cutting off funding came “in exchange for zero meaningful progress on policy”.
The US government funding tap has been turned off 21 times over the past half a century, with the most recent shutdown – which lasted 34 days under Mr Trump from late 2018 to early 2019 – also ranking as the longest.
It ended when Mr Trump backed down over his demand for Congress to fund his southern border wall.
Originally published as Republican rebels plot leadership coup over deal to keep US government running
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