A White House spokesman urged newly elected Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy to reveal agreements made between himself and Republican holdouts during the new Congress’ speaker vote.
The new Congress’ speaker vote lasted 15 ballots before McCarthy gained a majority of votes to secure speakership.
“An unprecedented tax hike on the middle class and a national abortion ban are just a glimpse of the secret, backroom deals Speaker McCarthy made with extreme MAGA members to end this month’s chaotic elections and claim the gavel,” said White House spokesman Andrew Bates in an exclusive statement to POLITICO.
“It is well past time for Speaker McCarthy and the ultra MAGA Republican House members to come out of the dark and tell the American people, in-full, what they decided in secret.”
New: President Biden's aides are escalating a fight w/ newly empowered Republicans, with officials Tuesday calling on House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to “come clean” about secretive deals he made with hardliners that helped him eventually land the top job.https://t.co/exbUsvu5Z4
— Christopher Cadelago (@ccadelago) January 17, 2023
“The few agreements we know about would fundamentally reshape our economy in a devastating way for working families and criminalize women for making their own health care decisions,” Bates continued. “They’re also planning to plunge the economy into chaos and take millions of American jobs and 401k plans hostage unless they can cut Medicare.”
“What other hidden bargains did Speaker McCarthy make behind closed doors with the most extreme, ultra MAGA members of the House Republican conference?” he added. “The American people have a right to know – now – which is why we are calling on him to make every single one of them public immediately.”
According to Zero Hedge, concessions McCarthy reportedly agreed to in exchange for defecting Republicans votes include:
A return to the Jeffersonian Motion in which one single congressperson may seek removal of the Speaker should the Speaker of the House fail to follow through with policy; the convening of “Church” style committees investigating the weaponization of the FBI and other government organizations against the American people; a term limits proposal will be put up for a vote; 72-hour minimum time allotment for Congress members to read proposed legislation; the introduction of a Texas Border Plan; an end to COVID funding and mandates; and the introduction of budget bills to curb endless spending.
Over 20 Republicans defected from supporting McCarthy during the vote including Florida representative Matt Gaetz, Arizona representatives Paul Gosar and Andy Biggs, among others.
The outlet reached out to McCarthy for comment though the Speaker did not immediately respond.
“There’s not a side deal to anything,” McCarthy mentioned last week when pressed to reveal “backroom deals.”
“I think he gave away much more than I wish he’d given,” said Democrat Maryland representative Steny Hoyer. “I think it does give to a small, willful faction of his caucus, a negative faction of his caucus, a faction of his caucus that has been almost uniformly obstructionist, more authority than they ought to have.”
