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Florida Republican Representative Matt Gaetz publicly disagreed with former President Donald Trump in front of his own supporters on Monday.
During a discussion with Steve Bannon, a former strategist for Trump and host of the War Room podcast, Gaetz was asked about recent comments made by the former president about supporting Representative Kevin McCarthy in his bid for Speaker of the House.
"I can't wait to vote for Donald Trump in the 2024 election but if Donald Trump believes that Kevin McCarthy should be Speaker of the House, then Donald Trump is wrong," Gaetz said to Bannon, as they spoke in front of numerous Trump supporters. "President Trump is the leader of our movement, he sets the vision, but Donald Trump has not moved a single vote when it comes to the people considering how to cast their lot in the Speaker's race."
Gaetz's comments come shortly after Trump expressed support for McCarthy as Speaker of the House while speaking to Breitbart News.
"Kevin has worked very hard. I think he deserves the shot," Trump told Breitbart. " If you think, he's been all over. I think he deserves the shot. Hopefully, he's going to be very strong and going to be very good and he's going to do what everybody wants."
After serving as the House Republican leader, many have looked toward McCarthy as one of the top choices for Speaker as Republicans have retaken the majority of the House.
Over the past several weeks, Gaetz and some other Republican lawmakers have expressed opposition and criticism towards McCarthy's bid as House Speaker.
"I'm not voting for Kevin McCarthy. I'm not voting for him tomorrow. I'm not voting for him on the floor. And I am certain that there is a critical mass of people who hold my precise view. And so the sooner we can sort of dispense with the notion that Kevin is going to be speaker, then we can get to the important work," Gaetz said last month during an interview with conservative commentator Charlie Kirk.
In addition to Gaetz, some other Republican House members, such as Arizona's Andy Biggs, also said they will not vote for McCarthy.
Biggs, who is also running for House Speaker told Axios, "I'm not voting for him on January 3," in regards to McCarthy.
Gaetz told Axios that "I speak for myself, but I think the chance that the five of us don't vote together is pretty much zero," alluding to himself, Biggs, and other Republican House members Ralph Norman, Matt Rosendale and Bob Good.
On Monday, Gaetz also said that fellow Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene would be "a terrific speaker."
A spokesperson for Gaetz told Newsweek that they had no further comment.
Newsweek reached out to representatives for Trump for comment.
About the writer
Matthew Impelli is a Newsweek staff writer based in New York. His focus is reporting social issues and crime. In ... Read more