Kevin McCarthy vows he’ll stop Matt Gaetz from running for governor in Florida

Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy celebrated a recent victory against one of the Republicans who ousted him and vowed to keep Matt Gaetz out of the Florida governor’s mansion on Tuesday at a fiery RNC press conference.

McCarthy spoke to outlets at a briefing held by the Foreign Press Center at the Republican National Convention (RNC) and took a question from The Independent regarding his recent flexing of political muscle in the primary against Rep Bob Good, chair of the House Freedom Caucus, in Virginia. Jokingly correcting the question, he lauded the defeat of Good as a “big victory” in his campaign to rid the House of the eight Republicans who stood against him.

“If you have a Bob Good who wants chaos? You're wasting a majority. And if I have a John McGuire, a Navy SEAL who understands how to be a conservative?” McCarthy asked, implying the choice was obvious.

Then, he launched into a scathing tirade against Gaetz — one which echoed his claim that Gaetz paid for sex with an underage girl, a claim which Gaetz strongly denies. The Florida congressman was investigated by the Justice Department over the matter, which declined to bring charges.

“His name's Matt Gaetz. He didn't do it because he dislikes me, but he did it because he has an Ethics complaint because he paid to sleep with an underage girl. And he wanted me to stop the Ethics [committee],” said McCarthy.

In January of 2023, Gaetz attempted to block McCarthy’s bid to become speaker. In October, Gaetz filed a motion to vacate that triggered a no-confidence vote wherein Gaetz, Good and six other Republicans joined with every Democrat present to oust McCarthy. McCarthy has claimed that Gaetz filed the motion in retailiation for his refusal to halt the Ethics