CNN’s Entire Studio Literally Points And Laughs At Republicans After Stunning Near-Brawl Erupts On House Floor

CNN’s entire coverage crew was beside itself with laughter as they replayed and dissected the stunning near-brawl that erupted on the House floor as then-outgoing House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy suffered his 14th defeat.

McCarthy’s tumultuous bid to become speaker amid a revolt from House conservatives finally culminated in victory on the fifteenth try late Friday night/Saturday morning, after failing to secure a win in fourteen consecutive votes.

As McCarthy was losing that penultimate fourteenth ballot, C-SPAN‘s unfettered cameras captured the shocking scene of Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL) being physically restrained by the face as he lunged at Rep. Matt Gaetz and the House floor erupted in chaos.

The CNN crew — featuring anchors and analysts like Jake Tapper, Erin Burnett, John King, Jamie Gangel, Manu Raju, Kasie Hunt, John Avlon, and more — covered the altercation between Gaetz and “some guy in the back” in real time:

Minutes later, as the House voted on whether to adjourn until Monday, the CNN coverage crew began playing the footage of the earlier fracas on a loop, and laughed it up as they tried to game out what had occurred:

COLLINS: — what changed in between exact moment —

HUNT: They were expecting a third —

COLLINS: Correct.

HUNT: — present vote.

COLLINS: Correct.

HUNT: And that did not materialize. So, one of the other four —

COLLINS: Matt Rosendale.

HUNT: — should be the focus here because one of the other four clearly had indicated to the McCarthy team that they were willing to vote present which would have handed him the gavel.

TAPPER: All right, Erin, we have a game of clue here. Was it Congressman Rosendale in the House chamber with a false promise? Back to you.

(LAUGHTER)

ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: A night of treachery and an image of what happened. All right, just to give some context to this, that moment on the floor, I want to show everyone the video, when you saw Mike Rogers of Alabama appearing to have to be physically restrained.

UNKNOWN: Right on the face. Somebody grabbed him.

UNKNOWN: Physically restrained.

UNKNOWN: Watch the face. Watch his face.

UNKNOWN: Wow!

(LAUGHTER)

UNKNOWN: As Kevin McCarthy is (INAUDIBLE) walking away. This is treachery.

UNKNOWN: Absolute — first of all, I would like to thank all of our viewers for watching CNN’s exclusive screening of snakes on a plane part two.

(LAUGHTER)

UNKNOWN: I have never seen the amount of treachery, not since 1856 when Preston Brooks (INAUDIBLE) have we seen this treachery under the Capitol dome. This is —

UNKNOWN: Was that on C-Span?

UNKNOWN: This is crazy.

UNKNOWN: And they have not passed the rules package (ph).

(CROSSTALK)

UNKNOWN: This is absolutely high drama, crazy stuff. I can’t imagine how McCarthy and McHenry, who I was heaping praise upon earlier for their, you know —

[23:25:00]

(CROSSTALK)

UNKNOWN: — how much they —

UNKNOWN: Bu as you said —

UNKNOWN: Wait a second — UNKNOWN: Somebody lied to them.

(CROSSTALK)

UNKNOWN: Right when it happened, people were telling me, Rosendale committed the first act of treachery. But now —

UNKNOWN: He was supposed to vote present.

UNKNOWN: It looks like maybe they were all in it together.

(LAUGHTER)

Watch above via CNN.

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