Kevin McCarthy has a whole new problem

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In my lifetime, I’ve witnessed the transitions of three different Democratic presidents (one could argue two, as the former guy refused to invite President-elect Joe Biden to the White House). Every time it happens, Republicans tend to behave more unhinged than usual – as they find themselves out of power and subordinate to the people they’ve spent much of their lives despising.

This is why President Clinton found himself faced with relentless investigations and impeachment over a trivial issue – and why President Obama dealt with unprecedented degrees of obstruction at the hands of a Republican-controlled House and Senate.

Now, Republicans are yet again making noise over impeaching another Democratic president – partially because their last president has the historic distinction of being impeached twice. The problem is, they’ve gotten a little rusty at this. The Biden administration is playing hardball as it is – making a clear case that the impeachment is politically motivated, but now the Republicans are actually helping them make it.

Rep. Matt Gaetz, calling into a right-wing talk show, revealed that he planned to force a vote on impeachment for the Republican-controlled House, even if it means forcing out Kevin McCarthy as speaker. By doing so, he made it much harder for this to sail, when it was an ill-fated plan to begin with.