Florida’s Matt Gaetz has always been seen as a heavy hitter, even taking on big names like former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. And now, he’s taking on another so-called RINO.
If you remember, Gaetz has been superbly influential in ousting a few from his own party’s caucuses and seats of power. As Politico reports, those days are not over.
So, who is his target now?
Republican Representative Mike Bost of Illinois.
You might recall that Bost was a strong supporter of Speaker McCarthy.
In fact, during at least one closed-door meeting, Bost made a special effort to silence Gaetz on his opposition to the former speaker. At one point, when Gaetz was laying out his accusations against McCarthy, Bost stood up and yelled at Gaetz to basically “sit down and shut up.”
He also threatened that if Gaetz didn’t, Bost would “put you down.” As Axios reported at the time, Bost was “almost lunging at him.”
Gaetz, of course, led successful the effort to oust former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. During the initial 15-ballot election last January, Bost yelled as Gaetz was laying into McCarthy on the floor.https://t.co/VjtfKxzqNP
— Brenden Moore (@brendenmoore13) February 6, 2024
Naturally, this has put quite a burr in the working relationship of Gaetz and Bost since then.
And so, when a new Republican challenger for Bost’s seat arrived on the scene, Gaetz wasted little time in not only endorsing the newcomer but even campaigning for him.
Enter Dareen Bailey, who’s running for Bost’s seat in southern Illinois.
According to posts and statements made by Gaetz, Bailey is nothing like Bost. The former has been described as a “true fighter who will rock the establishment,” which Bost is considered to be a part of.
Thank you, @mattgaetz! My opponent’s a career politician too busy granting amnesty to illegal immigrants and sending billions to Ukraine to remember the folks back home. I'm eager to join forces on the campaign trail and fight to secure our border, complete Trump’s wall, and put… https://t.co/3Pdb65I3fZ
— Darren Bailey (@DarrenBaileyIL) February 7, 2024
And true to his word, Gaetz does have some experience in ousting those he doesn’t believe are actually working for the people.
McCarthy fit that bill, as I mentioned before. So, too, did Liz Cheney, whom Gaetz successfully campaigned against in 2022, resulting in her losing her primary race.
Now, Bost says he doesn’t see Gaetz as “a threat.” But maybe he should.
