Republicans Float Repealing Motion to Vacate Rule That Led to McCarthy Ouster; Some GOP Lawmakers Want Motion to Vacate Rule Repealed

Republicans float repealing motion to vacate rule that led to McCarthy ouster:

As House Republicans vet candidates to replace Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) as speaker, some GOP lawmakers are considering raising the threshold required to make a motion to vacate, which could prevent a replay of McCarthy’s ouster.

When McCarthy ran for speaker in January, the California Republican made a number of concessions to rank-and-file lawmakers in exchange for their support in the leadership elections. Part of that deal was a rule change to allow a single member to raise a motion to vacate, which would then force a vote on the measure.

Now, some of McCarthy’s closest allies and top Republicans are suggesting repealing that rule altogether, arguing it makes it too difficult to govern.

“We can’t put a new speaker in place with this structure that is completely dysfunctional. You can’t do that. That’s wrong. It would be unjust to another speaker,” Rep. Garret Graves (R-LA) said. “Let’s keep in mind, there is a conference rule that says that you cannot bring a motion to vacate without the support of the conference.”

Some members indicated that rule could be up for negotiation as they consider a new speaker, noting it would likely be something candidates would run on as part of their platform.

“I guess that’ll be negotiated by whoever wants to run as part of trying to get the votes,” Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA) said. “We’ll see how that goes.”

“I think they’ll reconsider some things,” added Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN), who voted to remove McCarthy. “I think they might take [the motion to vacate rule] out.” —>READ MORE HERE

Some GOP Lawmakers Want Motion to Vacate Rule Repealed:

Some Republican lawmakers want to repeal the rule that allows a single member to raise a motion to vacate the chair of House Speaker to avoid a repeat of Kevin McCarthy’s historic ouster, reports the Washington Examiner.

“We can’t put a new speaker in place with this structure that is completely dysfunctional. You can’t do that. That’s wrong. It would be unjust to another speaker,” Rep. Garrett Graves, R-La., said. “Let’s keep in mind, there is a conference rule that says that you cannot bring a motion to vacate without the support of the conference.”

The rules of the House allow for any single lawmaker — Democrat or Republican — to make a “motion to vacate the chair.”

It’s a rare and strong procedural tool that has only been used twice in the past century. But in recent years, conservatives have wielded the motion as a weapon against their leaders.

In January, McCarthy, hoping to appease some on the hard right as he fought to gain their vote for speaker, agreed to give as few as five Republican members the ability to initiate a vote to remove him. But when that wasn’t good enough for his critics, he agreed to reduce that threshold to one — the system that historically has been the norm.

Lawmakers in the Main Street Caucus who call themselves “pragmatic conservatives” said the rule forces a “chokehold” on the speakership. —>READ MORE HERE

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