Matt Gaetz Effectively House Speaker as Kevin McCarthy Caves: Steve Bannon

Florida Representative Matt Gaetz has wrangled legislative control from House Speaker Kevin McCarthy as all eyes are on Republicans to avert a government shutdown, according to former White House adviser Steve Bannon.

Gaetz, part of a group of hardline conservatives, has tested McCarthy in recent weeks, similar to legislative threats he made during debt ceiling negotiations months ago, including statements openly stating his intent to vacate the speaker. The faction has refused to endorse a short-term continuing resolution (CR) that would continue to fund the government at current levels before a shutdown goes into effect on October 1.

"Continuing Resolutions continue failure and decline and debt," Gaetz told Newsweek via email on Friday. "Congress must pass single-subject spending bills to get America back on track."

Bannon told Newsweek via text on Friday: "Gaetz is now effectively the House speaker. Gaetz said in the well of the House he would 'bring McCarthy into compliance.' He has."

Gaetz reportedly met with McCarthy on Thursday and told Jake Sherman of Punchbowl News that that he's advocating for pausing consideration of the Pentagon spending bill and moving to bills that cut spending, including state and foreign operations, agriculture, energy and water.

"Just keep doing everything the way it's always been done is the definition of a continuing resolution," Gaetz said Thursday on the Timcast podcast. "I do not believe that is a serious and responsible way to govern, and I believe the reason we have a $32 trillion debt is because we have governed this way since the mid-90s."

He again called out McCarthy for a CR that "would buy us time."

"I've heard the same bull**** for [the] seven years I've been here, and it's always the same," Gaetz said. "So, I got a group of conservatives together and we said we will never vote up or down for every agency of government together ever again. We have to impose discipline on this process."

He also took credit for the apparent shift in House Republicans' legislative ideology, saying, "The House has really abandoned the McCarthy CR strategy today and has embraced the Matt Gaetz strategy of single-subject spending bills."

Tennessee Representative Tim Burchett, a Republican, said on Bannon's War Room podcast that he supports Gaetz's approach of focusing on single-bill issues rather than passing an entire CR.

The House currently has a lack of leadership, Burchett added.

"@SpeakerMcCarthy purposefully backed us up against the wall on spending bills and then sent everyone home at 3pm on a Thursday," Gaetz wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on Friday morning. "This is not the French work week. We're going to have to address his leadership after we get through this government funding crisis."

Republican Senator James Lankford of Oklahoma and Democratic Senator Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire introduced the Prevent Government Shutdowns Act that would stop federal shutdowns if spending agreements are not reached by the year's deadline.

Newsweek reached out to McCarthy and the White House via email for comment.