444: 'Just the same clown car with a different driver'

Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy has been sent packing by a vote initiated by a minority of his own Republican caucus. Now the House of Representatives is tasked with picking a new Speaker, and Rep. Kelly Armstrong, North Dakota's at-large Congressman, says the price of his vote is a rule change to ensure the next Speaker won't suffer the same fate.

Otherwise, the House of Representatives risks becoming "just the same clown car with a different driver."

Armstrong, who was an outspoken supporter of McCarthy and voted to keep him as Speaker, said he's not interested in the job, saying he doesn't believe he has enough tenure in the House yet to lead it, and that he has young children at home. Although he didn't name names, he did say there were two candidates running to be Speaker, and perhaps a third he believes will run.

But whoever is elected will have to contend with a noisy minority of Republicans who aren't motivated by a desire to govern the country, Armstrong said, adding that "far too many members of our caucus" have "no incentive" to make serious policy.

Armstrong was also critical of Democrats, saying he doesn't want to hear them complain about extremism in the Republican caucus. "You just voted with the eight most extreme members of our caucus. You can pound sand," he said.

As to rumors that Rep. Matt Gaetz, the MAGA Republican from Florida who led the charge to take down McCarthy, could be expelled from Congress based on an upcoming ethics report about his activities at the heart of a now-concluded federal sex trafficking investigation, Armstrong said that sort of talk was inappropriate. All the more so because the House Ethics Committee hasn't even issued a report.

He believes people like Gaetz, and Democratic Congressman Jamaal Bowman who is also facing calls for expulsion after he pulled a fire alarm during a vote to keep the government open, have a right to be in Congress even if he doesn't personally like or support either of them. "They got elected by 750,000 people," Armstrong said. "Those 750,000 people have a right to a voice in Congress."

Also on this episode, co-host Ben Hanson and I discuss the recent controversy over bigoted social media messages posted by state Rep. Brandon Prichard, a Bismarck Republican, as well as the death of Sen. Doug Larsen, a Republican from Mandan.