Republican Leaders Under Fire For Horrible Midterm Numbers

According to two witnesses in the room, GOP Virginia Rep. Bob Good slammed House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy during a closed-door House GOP Conference meeting.

According to the two people, Good warned McCarthy that the GOP “got rolled” in the 2022 midterm elections. Good, who won re-election to a second term, also said McCarthy had failed to contact him in 2020 when he successfully elected into office current Republican Rep. Denver Riggleman. Good, a Freedom Caucus member, has previously stated that he will not support McCarthy as Speaker.

“Kevin McCarthy has done nothing to gain my vote for speaker,” Good declared on Wednesday.

According to one source, Good also condemned the National Leadership Fund for “spending the money on nominees against the wishes of the people.” According to National Election Commission reports, McCarthy’s Congressional Leadership Fund (CLF) collected more than $244 million and spent over $186 million throughout the midterm elections.

According to FEC filings, CLF paid $1.8 million to promote Good in 2020. He defeated Democrat Cameron Webb by five points in that campaign.

GOP Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs is allegedly considering running for Speaker of the House against McCarthy. The Republican Party is set to hold a leadership election on Tuesday, despite the fact that many members have urged for the election to be postponed. According to the sources, Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz requested that the elections be postponed during the conference meeting. Although McCarthy refused to postpone leadership elections, he did vow not to exploit Democratic votes to gain the speakership.

Unlike previous leadership elections, which require only a simple majority of the party members, the Speaker of the House has to be elected by a vote of the entire parliament.

Despite McCarthy’s and his supporters’ promises of a “red wave” victory, Republicans were unable to unseat disadvantaged Democrats such as Michigan Rep. Elissa Slotkin as well as Virginia Rep. Abigail Spanberger. Conservatives have secured or are currently leading in 222 districts, while Democrats have secured or are leading in 213. According to the New York Times, nineteen races have yet to be called.

Members of the Freedom Caucus, such as Good, have vowed to withdraw their backing for McCarthy unless the Republicans alters House rules that they believe provide the Speaker far to much power. Most significantly, they want the House to reintroduce the motion to vacate the chair, which empowers any member to ask for a vote to replace the Speaker. Nancy Pelosi vetoed the resolution after Democrats reclaimed control of the House in 2018.

McCarthy has indicated that he will not revive the motion, despite the fact that not doing so could cost him the speakership.

“I don’t do well with leveraging,” he told Punchbowl News in Oct.