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Kevin McCarthy
Former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives
First Speaker in U.S. history to be removed by his own caucus; took 15 ballots to win speakership; initially blamed Trump for January 6 before capitulating
Overview
Kevin Owen McCarthy served as Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from January 7 to October 3, 2023; becoming the first Speaker in American history to be removed from office by a motion to vacate. McCarthy's path to the speakership was historically chaotic; requiring 15 rounds of voting over four days in January 2023; as hard-right members extracted concessions that weakened the Speaker's power. In the immediate aftermath of the January 6 Capitol attack; McCarthy told Republican colleagues that Trump bore responsibility; stating "I've had it with this guy" and saying he would tell Trump to resign. Audio recordings of these statements by New York Times journalists Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns contradicted McCarthy's subsequent public defense of Trump. Within weeks; McCarthy reversed course and traveled to Mar-a-Lago to reconcile with Trump. McCarthy was removed as Speaker in October 2023 by a motion to vacate led by Rep. Matt Gaetz; with 8 Republicans joining all Democrats to oust him. He subsequently resigned from Congress entirely in December 2023.
Key Affiliations
Controversies & Concerns
Audio recordings revealed McCarthy told Republican colleagues Trump bore responsibility for January 6 and that he would tell Trump to resign; McCarthy then publicly denied these statements before recordings emerged
Traveled to Mar-a-Lago within weeks of January 6 to reconcile with Trump after privately blaming him for the attack
Required a historic 15 rounds of voting over four days to win the speakership; making unprecedented concessions to far-right members
First Speaker in U.S. history to be removed from office by a motion to vacate; 8 Republicans and all Democrats voted to oust him
Removed security footage access from January 6 investigation and provided 41,000 hours of Capitol surveillance footage to Tucker Carlson before the public
Resigned from Congress entirely in December 2023 after being ousted as Speaker
Related Investigations (1)
Known Associates & Connections
Donald Trump
McCarthy privately blamed Trump for January 6 then reconciled at Mar-a-Lago; Trump later endorsed his ouster
Matt Gaetz
Led the motion to vacate that removed McCarthy as Speaker
Sources & Documentation
2 documented sources from official records, investigations, and reports
Personal Information
- Born
- January 26, 1965
- Birthplace
- Bakersfield, California, USA
Education
- •California State University; Bakersfield; B.S. Marketing; M.B.A.
Key Timeline
January 26, 1965
Born in Bakersfield, California
2006
Elected to U.S. House of Representatives from California
January 6, 2021
Tells Republican colleagues Trump is responsible for Capitol attack
January 28, 2021
Visits Trump at Mar-a-Lago to reconcile
January 3-7, 2023
15 rounds of voting over 4 days to win speakership; makes unprecedented concessions
March 2023
Provides 41,000 hours of January 6 Capitol footage to Tucker Carlson
October 3, 2023
Removed as Speaker by motion to vacate; first in U.S. history
December 31, 2023
Resigns from Congress