Republican rebel threatens he’s ‘out’ if his party doesn’t change after 14 years Kevin McCarthy: Demands an end to the status quo as dissenters continue to plan to oust the GOP leader
- North Carolina Rep. Dan Bishop said he was “out” unless the status quo changed, but later made it clear he didn’t mean he was going to resign early
- He is among the 20 Republicans in the House of Representatives who voted against McCarthy
- Bishop said “existential threats” that McCarthy warned about “got worse” under his tenure in the Republican leadership.
One of the 20 House Republicans who voted against GOP leader Kevin McCarthy’s bid for speaker’s office said he would be “out” if rebel efforts to overhaul the status quo in Congress fail.
Lawmakers have been ready to negotiate with leaders, but have largely made it clear that they do not trust McCarthy alone to bring about the necessary changes within the House GOP to give rank and file members more say in the party.
“Either we’re going to see improvement up here, like we’ve seen remarkable improvements in North Carolina in the state legislature, or I’m out,” Rep. Dan Bishop told Roll Call.
Bishop told the outlet he’s “older than the average bear” and “won’t stay up here for decades.”
The conservative Republican reportedly added that problems had “worsened, not improved,” in “each” of McCarthy’s nearly 15 years in the House of Representatives.
Bishop’s spokesman accused another outlet of “deliberately misconstruing” the congressman’s remarks when he reported he threatened to resign if the bid to remove McCarthy from the running for speaker went through.
North Carolina Rep. Dan Bishop said he would be “out” if the status quo of the House GOP didn’t change, but wouldn’t clarify what that means
He is one of 20 Republicans who voted against House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy’s bid as speaker
“Congressman Bishop said that he has no intention of remaining on the Hill his entire life and that he would shorten his proposed term if we *eventually* failed to achieve the necessary changes to the institution,” she wrote on Twitter.
Bishop himself clarified: “This story is false. I said nothing of the sort – I will serve out my term with all my might and might.’
House lawmakers return wearily to the US Capitol on Thursday as Republicans’ battle over who will lead their thin majority heads into a third day.
The historic gridlock has paralyzed Capitol Hill; without a Speaker, the 118th House of Representatives cannot be sworn in, and new legislation cannot have its say or go through committees — which do not yet have formal chairmen.
And on Wednesday, a group of Republican military veterans held a news conference in which they warned that the disorder would create major national security vulnerabilities. Florida Rep. Michael Waltz said from the podium, “Authoritarian regimes around the world are pointing to what’s going on in the House of Representatives and saying, ‘Look at the mess of democracy, look at how it’s done doesn’t work, can’t function.’
McCarthy has been reported to have made some significant new concessions to his 20 critics, including a measure that would allow a GOP lawmaker to trigger a vote for a new House Speaker — known as a motion to evict the chairman — according to CNN.
It’s not clear if the new concessions made by GOP leader McCarthy will be enough to win him the Speaker’s Gavel
McCarthy has also reportedly promised Conservatives votes on border security and term limits legislation.
He also reportedly agreed to give far-right House Freedom Caucus members more seats on the House Rules Committee. The powerful body acts as a gatekeeper for all laws that come down to the ground.
But his path to winning 218 votes still seems murky with at least five likely holdouts, and no Democrat would vote for the conservative concessions McCarthy has given.
However, Texas Rep. Chip Roy — a critic of McCarthy who was also a leader in negotiations for the Conservatives — reportedly told GOP leaders he could convince 10 holdouts to cross the line amid the new concessions, according to CNN.
Roy also signaled that he would be willing to change his position if certain demands were met, somewhat refuting her critics’ argument that the Never Kevin Caucus was only interested in deposing McCarthy.
“I want to be able to have enough members on the rules committee so that we can block bad bills,” Roy told Fox News in a television interview.
“I want to make sure that Republicans are the ones who make sure these bills get a say through the Rules Committee, and I want an open change process, and I want to be able to make point-of-order motions on the ground.”