McCarthy, Facing an Ouster and a Shutdown, Orders an Impeachment Inquiry

Mr. Gaetz told reporters on a telephone call that he intended to regularly force snap votes to remove Mr. McCarthy, threatening to make it part of the routine opening of every legislative day in the House: “the prayer, the pledge and the motion to vacate.”

His broadside illustrated the precarious position Mr. McCarthy finds himself in as he seeks to placate his far right while finding some spending accommodation with the Democratic-controlled Senate and the White House that avoids a politically dangerous shutdown. The Senate was set on Tuesday to begin working its way through a series of bipartisan spending bills, but with time running short before government funding is exhausted on Sept. 30, House Republicans have managed to pass only one — on a party-line vote — and are in deep turmoil over how to proceed in meeting the basic obligations of the government.

Far-right Republicans were also promising to withhold their votes for any temporary spending bill that continues funding at current levels, and even a Pentagon spending bill that usually draws bipartisan support was in trouble in the House. After Mr. McCarthy’s impeachment announcement, members of the far-right Freedom Caucus reiterated that they would not support a stopgap measure, meaning Mr. McCarthy might have to turn to Democrats to help pass one or face a shutdown and the ensuing blame.

“We’re not interested in a continuing resolution that continues the policies and the spending of the Biden-Schumer-Pelosi era,” said Representative Scott Perry, Republican of Pennsylvania and the chairman of the Freedom Caucus, referring to the Democratic leaders in power when the current spending level was set. “We’re not going to vote for it. We didn’t vote for it last December, and we’re not going to vote for it now.”

Democrats have been preparing their impeachment defenses of the president. Representative Jamie Raskin of Maryland, the top Democrat on the Oversight Committee, huddled with members of his panel on Sunday night to plan a response to the Republicans.