GOP lawmakers deny revenge play against Pelosi with office evictions after McCarthy ouster
Fox News
House Republican lawmakers denied revenge when evicting former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and former Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., from their secret Capitol offices.
This week, interim House Speaker Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., booted both Pelosi and reportedly Hoyer from their hideaways — private offices in the Capitol that each senator and a select few House lawmakers have — after now-former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., was ousted from the role.
However, several GOP lawmakers told Fox News Digital that the evictions were not rooted in vengeance, but rather because the office is reserved for the immediately preceding speaker.
NANCY PELOSI EVICTED FROM HER PRIVATE OFFICE IN THE CAPITOL BY INTERIM HOUSE SPEAKER
“This was a decision by Speaker Pelosi in getting removed because that is the office for the former speaker,” Louisiana GOP Rep. Garret Graves told Fox News Digital on Wednesday.
“She’s no longer the immediately preceding speaker so that was a decision she made by evicting Kevin McCarthy,” Graves continued. “That was her own decision.”
House Freedom Caucus chairman Scott Perry, R-Penn., said the evictions were not done in revenge but that it seems to him “unfortunately that we have an unexpected recent vacancy in this with the Speaker’s office and that speaker that’s been recently the speaker now has to have a place per the rules.”
“So that [place] needs to be reoccupied or occupied by somebody different,” Perry said. “That’s just the that’s just the flow of business here.”
“So, I don’t think it’s personal,” he added. “I don’t think it’s anything other than, you know, we have a new tenant here, and he needed to move in.”
Perry said he believes that the evictions “cascade” and that there’s “only so many offices, and once one person is displaced, then they want to displace the next person.”
Ohio Rep. Warren Davidson, also a Republican, said he doesn’t think the evictions were a revenge tactic and deferred to McHenry for reasoning.
“And in some ways, I think it’s a test case to say what are the limits to the power of the speaker pro-tem,” Davidson said. “And I guess I’m encouraged that Speaker Pelosi complied, and they’re emptying the office out.”
“I think it was a good decision to kick her out. And, frankly, I suggested that, you know, Patrick McHenry might ought to move on and terminate some folks while he’s got the opportunity, if he does, in fact, have the power to do so.”
Davidson also deferred to McHenry on whether other House Democrat hideaways would be put on notice and noted that the speaker pro-tem was a recent addition in the wake of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Hoyer’s office declined to comment on the eviction. Pelosi’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Pelosi was evicted from her private Capitol office by the new speaker pro-tempore on Tuesday after the vote to oust McCarthy.
Hoyer’s displacement came on Wednesday, the first full day following McCarthy’s ouster, according to multiple media reports.