House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s (R-Calif.) plan to boot Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) from her committee assignment could run into a familiar roadblock.
McCarthy has vowed to prevent Omar from serving on the House Foreign Affairs Committee due to “repeated antisemitic and anti-American remarks.”
But to make good on his promise, he needs a majority of the House to vote for it.
And with a slim majority, McCarthy can only lose four votes, and already three Republicans have voiced opposition to the move.
On Monday, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) signaled he could throw a wrench in the plan as he revealed he is not currently on board — and he could be the fourth vote against it.
During an appearance on Newsmax, the conservative lawmaker said, “I view the Schiff and Swalwell matter somewhat differently than I view the Ilhan Omar matter.”
“Ilhan Omar didn’t lie about our intelligence agencies. She didn’t say that Trump was a Russian agent based on information from a particular committee that was just totally bogus,” he continued. “The reason I think a lot of Republicans want to kick Ilhan Omar off of the Foreign Affairs Committee is because they don’t like what she has to say.”
Gaetz kicked off the new Congress as one of the leaders of the opposition to McCarthy winning the speaker’s gavel.
Watch the video below:
As of tonight, I am undecided as to whether or not I would vote to remove Rep. @Ilhan Omar from the Foreign Affairs Committee. pic.twitter.com/nNePwNBJqq
— Rep. Matt Gaetz (@RepMattGaetz) January 31, 2023
Gaetz went on, “I’m undecided on that question because the Democrats moved Overton Window and I do believe Speaker McCarthy deserves deference. And so I want to hear him out.”
“I am undecided as of tonight as to whether or not I would vote to remove Ilhan Omar from the Foreign Affairs committee because it’s one thing to do dangerous things to the country with intelligence. It’s quite another to say ‘I don’t like your viewpoint, and thus I want to remove you,'” he explained.
The Florida congressman also said he is “uncomfortable” because he believes “the case against” Omar is not “being subjected to any due process.”
Additionally, Gaetz praised Omar for some of her line of questioning about “neoconservative policies” that were “very detrimental” in parts of the world, such as South America.
He also said some of her arguments “at times align with America First policies.”
Omar criticized McCarthy for trying to remove her from her committee assignment as she wrote in a tweet, “McCarthy is following a well worn playbook: pit minority groups against each other in order to further marginalize them.
“It has been used by demagogues throughout history and it won’t work. We will continue to out-organize and outwork the hate,” she added.
McCarthy is following a well worn playbook: pit minority groups against each other in order to further marginalize them. It has been used by demagogues throughout history and it won’t work.
We will continue to out-organize and outwork the hate.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) January 30, 2023
Punchbowl News reports House Republican leadership is still confident they will win the votes to kick Omar off of her committee.