Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz shared a tense interaction during a heated meeting with other lawmakers ahead of a potential government shutdown.

The division among GOP lawmakers was visible on Thursday evening as the chamber convened for late-night votes. The situation comes as there is just a little over two days before the federal government shuts down as the House is voting on a series of spending bills late in the evening.

Gaetz and McCarthy Face Off

However, even if they pass, the measures are expected to be dead on arrival in the Senate. The first of the votes passed a spending bill to fund the Department of State, foreign operations, and other related programs.

Tensions between lawmakers had been mounting throughout the day as House Republicans met behind closed doors earlier. As per CNN, it was the latest sign of infighting within the party as the House GOP conference has failed to coalesce around a plan to prevent a potential lapse in government funding.

Gaetz and McCarthy got into a testy exchange during the heated meeting, based on a source who was in the room with the lawmakers. The Florida representative allegedly got up from his seat and confronted the House speaker about whether his allies were paying conservative influencers to bash Gaetz in social media posts.

The allegation has been spreading on social media platforms, and one of the speaker's offices denied the claims. McCarthy responded by saying that he would not waste his time on Gaetz.

A different source also said that the House speaker shot back at the Florida lawmaker, saying that he does not know what Gaetz is spending his time on and added that he was donating $5 million to help keep the majority. The Florida Republican later confirmed some parts of his interaction with McCarthy in an interview with CNN's Manu Raju.

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Republican Infighting

Gaetz questioning McCarthy came after a conservative commentator, Rogan O'Handley, posted a screenshot of a message on X, formerly Twitter. The message allegedly came from a McCarthy ally to promote a post "against Gaetz and government shutdown," according to USA Today.

On top of denying the claims, McCarthy's team sent a cease and desist letter to an individual at the firm Notorious LLC, who they believe is behind the alleged campaign against Gaetz. The tensions between the two lawmakers have increased since the Florida representative threatened to oust the House speaker from his position.

After the tense interaction between Gaetz and McCarthy, some House GOP members in the room criticized the former, with one calling him a "scumbag." However, the lawmaker defended his actions by saying that McCarthy was not holding votes on issues such as term limits or balanced budgets, which he deemed important.

Some in the GOP believe that Gaetz's focus on McCarthy hinges on his potential goal of seeking a future foothold as a conservative TV pundit. Others said that it is in his desire for name recognition ahead of a widely expected Florida gubernatorial bid in 2026, which he previously denied, said Politico.

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