With a slam of the gavel after his ally Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) was ousted as speaker on Oct. 3 for the first time ever through a motion to vacate, Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) made himself known as the interim speaker.
The bowtie-wearing McHenry, 47, will temporarily hold the gavel until a speaker is chosen, a move scheduled for Oct. 11, with the previous day being a candidate forum.
Mr. McHenry, who represents North Carolina’s 10th Congressional District, was first elected to Congress in 2004 at age 29 after a two-year career in the Tar Heel State’s House of Representatives. He moved his way up to become House GOP chief deputy whip and eventually chairman of the House Financial Services Committee. Before entering public office, he worked in the administration of George W. Bush, whose 2000 campaign he also worked for.
In his first moves as speaker pro tempore, he evicted Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), who served as House majority leader between 2019 and 2023, from their hideaway offices in the Capitol—an apparent retaliatory move over the Democrats joining eight Republicans to oust Mr. McCarthy as speaker.
“With all of the important decisions that the new Republican Leadership must address, which we are all eagerly awaiting, one of the first actions taken by the new Speaker Pro Tempore was to order me to immediately vacate my office in the Capitol,” said Ms. Pelosi in a statement.
“Sadly, because I am in California to mourn the loss of and pay tribute to my dear friend Dianne Feinstein, I am unable to retrieve my belongings at this time,” she continued.
Mr. Hoyer’s office confirmed to The Epoch Times that he was asked by Mr. McHenry to vacate his hideaway office.
Mr. McHenry, who is one of the shortest members of Congress, handled a tall order earlier this year as one of the GOP negotiators in the debt ceiling battle, which resulted in numerous measures, including welfare reform, but was panned by many Republicans as insufficient in dealing with America’s dire fiscal situation.
In the aftermath of a failed House vote on Sept. 19 to proceed with a Defense Department appropriations bill, Mr. McHenry told The Epoch Times what he faces now as the temporary speaker, where he will oversee the picking of the one that will be second in line to the presidency.
“From time to time, you have to figure out if you have a majority, and you have to do it in a lifetime,” he said.
The next speaker will immediately oversee a spending fight and an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden.
“We’re trying a number of different ways to fund our government and figure out what the most conservative approach is that we can legislate in the House,” said Mr. McHenry.
At least one member has entered the speaker’s office: Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), chairman of the powerful House Judiciary Committee.
“We are at a critical crossroads in our nation’s history. Now is the time for our Republican conference to come together to keep our promises to Americans,” he said in a letter to his colleagues.
“The problems we face are challenging, but they are not insurmountable. We can focus on the changes that improve the country and unite us in offering real solutions,” continued Mr. Jordan. “But no matter what we do, we must do it together as a conference. I respectfully ask for your support for Speaker of the House of Representatives.”
In addition to Mr. Jordan, other possible names to take the gavel include House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) and House GOP Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.).
