Jeffries blasts GOP kicking Pelosi out of office space as "petty" and "petulant"
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Reps. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) speaking in Congress in January 2023. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) on Friday called House Republicans ordering top House Democrats to vacate their hideaway offices in the Capitol as "petty, partisan and petulant."
Why it matters: The move came hours after Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) was ousted as speaker by eight House Republicans and all Democrats in a week full of House GOP chaos and dysfunction.
- Interim House Speaker Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) on Tuesday ordered former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and former Democratic Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) to vacate their private offices.
- All members of Congress are given official offices, but some are also given a second private and unmarked office. The spaces are highly sought after but are usually only reserved for senators and senior House members.
- House Republicans "lashed out at historic public servants and tried to shift blame for the failed Republican strategy of appeasement," Jeffries wrote in a Washington Post op-ed.
Catch up quick: McCarthy was ousted from the role earlier this week in a historic vote after Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fl.) introduced a motion to vacate.
- McCarthy attracted right-wing backlash for striking a deal with moderate Republicans and Democrats last week to delay a government shutdown until Nov. 17, though no Democrats voted to spare him his job.
Details: Blasting the "Republican civil war," Jeffries rebuked the party for not working with Democrats to encourage bipartisanship in the chamber.
- Democrats have offered to do so by asking moderate Republicans to help create "a bipartisan governing coalition" that would in part change the chamber's rules to "undermine the ability of extremists to hold Congress hostage," he wrote.
- "In short, the rules of the House should reflect the inescapable reality that Republicans are reliant on Democratic support to do the basic work of governing. A small band of extremists should not be capable of obstructing that cooperation."
The big picture: Pelosi said the order to vacate was a "sharp departure from tradition," noting that she gave former Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) office spaces "for as long as he wished."
- Pelosi was given until the next day to leave the office, but she was in San Francisco at the time for memorial services following the death of Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)
- Rep. Garret Graves (R-La.), an ally of both McCarthy and McHenry, claimed earlier this week that offices are for the "preceding speaker" and would be offered to McCarthy.
- Two Republican sources told CNN earlier this week that McCarthy was behind the decision, and sources close to Pelosi and Hoyer said the order to vacate was retaliation for Democrats siding against him.
The House must now find a new speaker, with an election expected next week.
Go deeper: Who could be the next House speaker after Kevin McCarthy's ouster
