On Friday, after a group of seven House conservatives issued a public
letter outlining the demands that GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy would need
to meet to win their support in his bid for speaker, a key McCarthy
backer quietly reached out to several moderate Republicans with a
request, according to people familiar with the conversations.

The Freedom Caucus rabble-rousers had reiterated their demand that
McCarthy restore a 200-year-old, now-infamous House rule known as the
“motion to vacate,” which allows any one member to force a floor vote to
oust the speaker at any moment. 

McCarthy’s camp wanted the centrists to push back hard on the proposal,
which the speaker-hopeful fiercely opposes. If they did, McCarthy would
be able to point to their opposition, say his hands are tied and refuse
to give in to conservatives’ demands. McCarthy’s office declined to
comment to Playbook.

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