How Kevin McCarthy lost political cage fight with arch-enemy Matt Gaetz

Matt Gaetz has for weeks been dangling a threat to oust Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the US House of Representatives. It was a fight he picked - and one he ultimately won.

For the past couple of days, it looked like the media-savvy and sharp-tongued Mr Gaetz - from the other Hollywood, in Florida - had enough votes to get his coup under way.

But at times on Tuesday, it came across as the right-wing Florida rebel versus the rest of his party.

An hour or so before the first vote to ever successfully oust a sitting Speaker, as other lawmakers observed recess, Mr Gaetz sat alone in the House chamber, with the occasional Democratic lawmaker stopping for a chat.

When voting began and members of Congress streamed on to the House floor, the contrast on either side was immediate and striking.

Democrats gathered in animated conversation and laughter, as relaxed as if they were at a cocktail party.

At their caucus meeting earlier on Tuesday, they had agreed to oppose Mr McCarthy in unison and present their own leader, Hakeem Jeffries, as the best choice for Speaker.

Exiting that meeting room, member after member told us they considered the Republican Speaker from California to be unprincipled, untrustworthy and therefore undeserving of being rescued by them.

With their efforts to cajole Democratic votes in support of Mr McCarthy achieving zero success, the Republicans on the House floor appeared largely dejected.

Many sat quietly as they waited for the vote to begin.

Meanwhile, Mr Gaetz sat at the back of the room with fellow defectors like Eli Crane and Tim Burchett, as well as others who had not yet agreed to back him.

When Mr McCarthy walked on to the floor, he made every effort to appear nonplussed by it all. He huddled with allies, pulling playfully at one's tie, and then sat back in his seat with his legs crossed.

Votes in the House can be rather lengthy and boring. Debates ahead of these roll calls are typically humdrum and occur before a barely full chamber.

That was not the case on Tuesday. The House was nearly full, with less than 10 absences in total, while the galleries above were packed with visitors and members of the press.

The debate, too, was lively.

Mr Gaetz did most of the talking, backed up by only two others.

When he said he did not want to be lectured to by colleagues whom he accused of being beholden to special interests, one Republican retorted from the back: "You're no martyr."

At various points, others groaned and guffawed at Mr Gaetz's comments.

As each member's vote was recorded by a verbal roll call, Mr McCarthy seemed to know his fate was sealed.

When the eighth Republican vote against him came in, he was staring straight ahead with little expression on his face.

Mr Gaetz pointedly walked over to where House Democrats exit the chamber and left among them.

Two Democrats hopped into the lift with me as the Capitol building emptied.

"Let the civil war begin," said one.

The other heartily laughed.