The least Merry Christmas? Kevin McCarthy’s rough 2023

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Fox News 2023 Year In Review with Bill Hemmer

2023 was another turbulent year, marked by political dysfunction at home and two major world conflicts. America’s Newsroom anchor Bill Hemmer looks back at the top headlines of the past 12 months. 

Christmastime is a season of joy and merriment for Americans across the country.

However, everyone has their own Grinch waiting to put a damper on their holiday.

Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., has a unique one following him this holiday season after his historic ouster from the speakership in October.

KEVIN MCCARTHY TAKES PARTING SWIPE AT MATT GAETZ IN FINAL INTERVIEW AS CONGRESSMAN: ‘HISTORY WILL JUDGE HIM’

Kevin McCarthy was ousted from the House speakership in October. (C-SPAN)

McCarthy had a rough go as House speaker.

After the lackluster 2022 midterm elections didn't yield the impactful majority Republicans were trying to manifest, McCarthy had to fight tooth and nail with 15 ballots to take the gavel from an apprehensive GOP conference.

McCarthy's tenure behind the gavel was further complicated by a four-seat majority that only got smaller as the year marched on.

The slim majority required the now-former speaker to wheel and deal to get GOP priorities across the finish line – but deal-brokering in Washington comes with its pitfalls.

Different wings of the GOP wanted different things on a variety of issues, including government funding.

McCarthy's speakership was blown up by Florida GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz after the House passed a continuing resolution to fund the government. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

McCarthy's speakership was blown up by Florida GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz, who dropped a privileged resolution to remove the now-former speaker after the House passed a continuing resolution to fund the government.

Seven other Republicans joined Gaetz on the move, leveraging the slim GOP majority in the House with Democrats in the chamber joining them to oust McCarthy from his job.

The move sparked a near-month-long fight to replace McCarthy that saw three top Republicans rejected from the job and culminated with the historic mid-Congress election of Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.

The former speaker announced after his ousting that he would be resigning from Congress.

McCarthy tended his resignation from Congress on Dec. 20, with his official last day in office being set for Dec. 31. His resignation further slims the GOP's House majority, especially in the wake of disgraced New York GOP former Rep. George Santos' removal from Congress.

However, the former speaker is not going quietly into the night.

McCarthy has taken parting shots at Gaetz as he's headed for the exit door, telling Fox News' Brian Kilmeade this month that history will not look back fondly on the Florida man's move.

"History will judge him," McCarthy said. "And history will judge all of us."

McCarthy's resignation further slims the GOP's House majority, especially in the wake of disgraced New York GOP former Rep. George Santos' removal from Congress. (Annabelle Gordon/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Kilmeade asked McCarthy about the "very real math problem" that comes with his departure.

"Gaetz is never a serious person," McCarthy responded. "I mean, when you think about what has transpired, and you talk about someone being selfish, this is all about an ethics complaint that he had with Congress before, that he looked at just himself, that he doesn't want it to come forward for America to know."

"But it's going to come forward," Kilmeade said.

"Yeah, it's more serious than Santos…" McCarthy replied.

"I think they'll see I'm Irish and Italian. I like a good fight," he said, referencing the time it took to land the speakership. "But then they took down Steve Scalise. They took down Jim Jordan. They took down Tom Emmer. I mean, these are the best players on the field."

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"But this is your party," Kilmeade said.

"Yeah, but the challenge is, it was eight people and every single Democrat. Eight Republicans joined the Democrats to create this mess. That's part of things that people have to look at to be able to change."

Fox News Digital's Taylor Penley contributed reporting.