Republican Rep. Patrick McHenry of North Carolina demonstrated on Tuesday that being interim Speaker of the House meant taking action.
According to Politico, McHenry practically sent former Speaker Nancy Pelosi packing by ordering her to vacate her private office space in the Capitol.
According to Fox News, the action was one of the first he took as speaker following the vote that ousted California Republican Rep. Kevin McCarthy as speaker.
And fumigated. https://t.co/INyQ50caqW
— James Woods (@RealJamesWoods) October 4, 2023
Politico said that the message was delivered by email.
“Please vacate the space tomorrow, the room will be re-keyed,” the email from the House Administration Committee stated.
The room was being reassigned, the email stated, “for speaker office use.”
Nancy Pelosi evicted from her private office in the Capitol by interim House speakerhttps://t.co/CXNHHtCc2I pic.twitter.com/hJrKCnP3gU
— Real Hamlet Garcia (@Hamletgarcia17) October 4, 2023
Politico pointed out that few House members have secret offices in the Capitol.
The change was completed by the staff of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, according to a spokeswoman from Pelosi’s office.
In a statement, according to Politico, Pelosi criticized her forced departure as “a sharp departure from tradition,” claiming she gave Speaker Dennis Hastert “a significantly larger suite of offices for as long as he wished” when she assumed the post.
Pelosi has been in California, claiming she needed to be there for the funeral of California Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein.
“Sadly, because I am in California to mourn the loss of and pay tribute to my dear friend Dianne Feinstein, I am unable to retrieve my belongings at this time,” she said in the statement, according to Politico.
UPDATE: Picture Tonight Outside of former Speaker Pelosi's Office.. Her staff is actually moving her out of the Speakers Office she refused to vacate as Demanded by the Temporary Speaker..
I can't stop laughing.. #NoSquatters https://t.co/5iXFxaWjX5 pic.twitter.com/ODIF4R9r7Y
— Matt Couch (@RealMattCouch) October 4, 2023
The office shift that precipitated McCarthy’s demise was one of several concerns that Congress must address as it moves forward following the momentous vote that deposed McCarthy.
McCarthy was seen leaving the speaker’s office with a package, according to The Washington Post on Tuesday night.
McCarthy informed Republican members of the House that he would not seek re-election, according to Politico.
Although the House was supposed to be in session this week to examine budget issues, Politico reported that the House would not be in session this week.