#GoodMorningDC. Kevin McCarthy played both sides last night amid strife within the Republican Party and we have all the deets.
Good Morning, DC. It’s Thursday, and House Democrats will vote today to remove Marjorie Taylor Greene from committees.
Last night, I published a scoop: The Inside Story: How Kevin McCarthy got to keep Liz Cheney and at the same time appease Donald Trump’s wing of the party.
In a politically calculated strategic move, McCarthy turned Marjorie Taylor Greene into a martyr as he thinks that the people will be angry once the Democrats go after her. McCarthy is ditching Greene effectively, leaving her to the Democrats to do the dirty work for him.
Last night MAGA lost, again, and inside the party structures, Trump is losing power. The vote for Liz Cheney was 145-61. The outcome must be distressing for former president Trump, who not only lost from Joe Biden, he now lost from Republicans too. Liz Cheney survived the same way American democracy had to endure.
Good Morning DC was told by a GOP insider that many Congress members disagree with Trump but pretend to do so since they are in Trump-friendly districts. They cannot wait to break from Trumpism, but they keep playing the double game of politics. They say one thing, think the other, and then do something completely different. Everyone is preoccupied with their political salvation in Washington DC.
McCarthy played both sides amid strife within the Republican Party, leaving Marjorie Taylor Greene, QAnonon supporter, in free fall. The only person who survived and stayed in party leadership is Liz Cheney.
What will be interesting to watch today is whether Republicans will break rank to vote with Democrats to remove Marjorie Taylor Greene. If they do, once the Lincoln party may further rupture and have one part of it slide further into political extremism.
Now that Trump has no sway over the party as he could not influence Liz Cheney’s removal, pretenders to the Oval Office in 2024, people like Ted Cruz, Matt Gaetz, and Josh Hawley know that they can take the parts of the Trump votes with them. MAGA lost last night inside the Republican party, but they are still politically alive across America. Trump voters are angry that Liz Cheney survived and that Greene will be made politically ineffective to serve her constituents once removed from the committees. These votes are up for grabs, and Ted Cruz can turn out to be the primary beneficiary of them come 2024.
In Myanmar, internet providers have been ordered by the military government to cut off social media. People of Myanmar are blocked from accessing Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp until February 7. Those who did not see how big tech decisions in the US would open Pandora’s censorship box and encourage dictators worldwide to do the same should now pay close attention.
What will Joe Biden do today?
After receiving a daily brief, President Biden and VP Harris will go in the afternoon, at 1:15 PM EST, to the State Department to meet with Secretary Blinken and speak with staff. Harris and Biden will return to the White House at 3:25 PM EST.
Press secretary Psaki will hold a briefing at 11:30 AM EST.
That’s a wrap for this Thursday morning. The political rollercoaster continues. In the meantime, Good Morning DC will make sure to keep you well informed.
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