Kevin McCarthy scoffs at Matt Gaetz’s Cabinet nomination

Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy praised all but one of President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet selections.

On Wednesday, Trump appointed Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida to be the incoming administration’s attorney general. In response, longtime rival and ousted Speaker McCarthy brushed off the nomination, insisting that it’s a political long shot.

Gaetz and McCarthy have had a long-standing feud that predates the nomination.

“I think the choices are very good except one,” McCarthy said in an interview Wednesday. “Look, Gaetz won’t get confirmed. Everybody knows that.”

“You can ask the president, but Gaetz couldn’t win in a Republican conference,” McCarthy continued. “So it doesn’t matter.”

Gaetz is a longtime Trump loyalist who is extremely popular among the MAGA base. That being said, Gaetz’s popularity may not translate in Washington, D.C., ahead of his Senate confirmation.

Although Republicans will have a 53-seat majority in January, confirming Gaetz will be challenging. Several senators have already expressed hesitation about Trump’s Cabinet picks, and some are skeptical Gaetz will have enough votes to be confirmed.

If the confirmation takes place after Trump is in office, in which Vice President-elect JD Vance would be able to vote in the confirmation process, Gaetz can afford to lose only three votes.

Gaetz’s office did not respond to Blaze News’ request for comment.

Gaetz and McCarthy have had a long-standing feud that predates the nomination. This feud came to a head in October 2023 when Gaetz filed a motion to vacate the speakership, making McCarthy the first-ever speaker to be ousted. Gaetz was joined by Republicans Andy Biggs of Arizona, Ken Buck of Colorado, Tim Burchett of Tennessee, Eli Crane of Arizona, Bob Good of Virginia, Nancy Mace of South Carolina, and Matt Rosendale of Montana.

After being removed from the speakership, McCarthy resigned from his post.

McCarthy and his allies went on to lead an unsuccessful, multimillion-dollar revenge campaign contributing to primary challengers running against the instigators, including Gaetz. Notably, Gaetz overwhelmingly won the Republican primary against Aaron Dimmock with 72.6%, while the McCarthy-backed challenger brought in only 27.4%.

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