McCarthy's Plan To Avoid Shutdown Criticized By Party Colleagues

Speaker Kevin McCarthy sent his House members home for the week without a clear plan to prevent a government shutdown after hardliners in the GOP conference once again thwarted his spending plans.

Speaker McCarthy criticized his far-right flank for wanting to "burn the place down" after conservatives dramatically opposed him and the GOP leadership on a procedural vote related to a Pentagon funding bill, causing total paralysis in the House. I Photo: Tanya E. Flores, U.S. Department of Agriculture Flickr

This marked an embarrassing floor defeat for his leadership for the second time this week, as reported by Kristin Wilson, Haley Talbot, Clare Foran, and Melanie Zanona for CNN.

He criticized his far-right flank for wanting to "burn the place down" after conservatives dramatically opposed him and the GOP leadership on a procedural vote related to a Pentagon funding bill, causing total paralysis in the House.

Members are now not scheduled to return to the session until Tuesday, making the possibility of a shutdown at the end of the next week increasingly likely.

"It's frustrating because I don't understand why anybody would vote against bringing the idea and having the debate," McCarthy told reporters.

Thursday's failed vote marked yet another setback for McCarthy, who is under pressure and facing threats of removal.

The defense funding bill, which was derailed, typically enjoys widespread bipartisan support, indicating how even usually uncontroversial issues have become entangled in Republican infighting.

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