A NC Republican representative is — for now, at least — the most powerful person in the U.S. House of Representatives and third in line to the presidency.
Patrick McHenry will serve as speaker pro tempore until the House votes to select a replacement for Rep. Kevin McCarthy who was ousted from the role by far-right members of his own party. The timeline and slate of candidates for the role is yet to be determined.
“Congressman McHenry’s responsibility to the Conference and the institution is to facilitate the election of the next Speaker. That is his focus at the moment,” McHenry’s office said in a statement to BPR.
McHenry, who was picked as his successor by McCarthy when he took office, is the first Speaker of the House from North Carolina in modern history.
The nine-term congressman represents the 10th Congressional District of North Carolina which includes Rutherford, Burke, Caldwell, Alexander, Catawba, Cleveland, Gaston, Iredell, Lincoln.
One of McHenry’s first acts in his temporary position on Wednesday was to oust Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi from her honorary office at the Capitol, according to the Associated Press.
McHenry’s social media has been silent since he was chosen as speaker. One of his last posts on X, formerly known as Twitter, noted McCarthy's good work.
“Speaker McCarthy has delivered consistent, conservative leadership. We need his steady hand to make good on our Commitment to America,” McHenry said on Twitter on October 2 just before 3pm.
“We have more work to do to secure our border and rein in spending. Wasting time on a motion to vacate is a disservice to the American people.
Though McHenry has not posted on X since the vote, a video of his vigorous swing of the Speaker’s gavel went viral, prompting memes.
The House voted 216-210 to vacate McCarthy’s position. McHenry voted against declaring the Speaker’s office vacant.
No North Carolina Republicanmembers of the US House voted to remove McCarthy, including Representative Dan Bishop who is a member of the far-right Freedom Caucus that pushed for McCarthy's removal.
NC-11 Representatiev Chuck Edwards, who represents the 14 far-west counties, also voted to keep McCarthy in his position.
Edwards voted with a majority of House members on September 30 for a Continuing Appropriations Act just hours before a government shutdown due to stalled budget negotiations lead by McCarthy.
“A government shutdown hurts everyone. I've been voting to cut spending, secure our border and take care of our men and women in uniform. I refuse to let our troops - many of whom are serving in harm's way - and their families be pawns in this process. That's why I voted to give Congress 45 days to continue our work,” Edwards said in a press release.
“No one wants to see our servicemen and women, retirees, federal law enforcement, farmers and public servants suffer because Washington can’t get its act together.”
Helen Chickering also contributed reporting to this report.
