From the moment McCarthy was elected speaker, it was clear that his ability to keep that job could depend on Democrats.

To get elected on that 15th ballot in January, McCarthy had to agree to a series of rules that made him a profoundly weak speaker -- including the provision allowing a single member of the House to call for a vote to oust him (the now-famous "motion to vacate"). But while it takes just one member to call for such a vote, it requires a majority to actually remove the speaker.

McCarthy could survive a rebellion from a handful of renegade Republicans -- but he could not survive such a rebellion if Democrats go along with it.

Gaetz has said he expected Democrats to save McCarthy. Many others did too.

As recently as Tuesday morning, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries suggested a way out of this for McCarthy. In an interview on MSNBC, he said House rules should be changed so that a single member could not force a vote on removing the speaker. Jeffries could deliver the votes to save McCarthy's job and the votes to change the rules to make it impossible for Gaetz to pull off a stunt like this again.

But Democrats would have a price for doing that. What would McCarthy offer in return? An end to the impeachment inquiry in President Joe Biden and his family? A guarantee that McCarthy honors the deal he struck on spending with the White House? Power sharing?

McCarthy has developed a cordial relationship with Jeffries, but he signaled no willingness to give Democrats anything in exchange for keeping the job.

In fact, McCarthy's actions have made it virtually impossible for Jeffries to throw him a lifeline. The speaker unilaterally launched the impeachment inquiry and just Saturday infuriated Jeffries by attempting to jam Democrats on a bill to keep the government funded for 45 days.

Back in January -- and again last month on impeachment -- McCarthy showed he was willing to do almost anything to appease his right-wing critics to get and keep his job. That worked for a while -- but it has made it virtually impossible to get Democrats to save him now.

-ABC News Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl

McCarthy ally Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., introduced a motion to table -- or effectively kill -- Gaetz's effort to oust McCarthy.

Democrats then requested a voice vote on the motion, which is ongoing. It is a 15-minute vote.

Speaker McCarthy and Rep. Gaetz are sitting just rows away from each other on the packed House floor ahead of votes on the motion to vacate.

Sources in the room shared with ABC News some of what was said during the hourslong Democratic caucus meeting earlier Tuesday.

Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin specifically raised McCarthy's conduct surrounding the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack, slamming his about-face on Trump after initially blaming him for the riot.

New York's Dan Goldman told members he received a call from former Republican Rep. Liz Cheney agreeing with his view about removing McCarthy and that he, and Trump, were threatening democracy. Another member in the room familiar with Goldman's remarks told ABC News that Goldman was speaking for himself, and not quoting Cheney, when he said, "Let's get rid" of McCarthy.

California Rep. Adam Schiff, a movie buff, quoted "The Big Lebowski" in reference to Gaetz and their agreement over removing McCarthy: "You're not wrong, Walter. You're just an a------."

In one of Rep. Patrick McHenry’s first moves as speaker pro tempore, he ordered former Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to immediately vacate her hideaway office in the Capitol by Wednesday, sources tell ABC News.

Most lawmakers have offices in the buildings surrounding the Capitol -- not in the Capitol itself.

Hideaway offices are private unmarked spaces in the Capitol, typically reserved for members of House leadership. But as a former speaker, Pelosi was allowed to keep one.

Pelosi was informed of this news as she was in San Francisco attending a memorial service for the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein.

In a statement to ABC News, Pelosi criticized the move, “With all of the important decisions that the new Republican Leadership must address, which we are all eagerly awaiting, one of the first actions taken by the new Speaker Pro Tempore was to order me to immediately vacate my office in the Capitol. Sadly, because I am in California to mourn the loss of and pay tribute to my dear friend Dianne Feinstein, I am unable to retrieve my belongings at this time.”

Pelosi continued, “This eviction is a sharp departure from tradition. As Speaker, I gave former Speaker Hastert a significantly larger suite of offices for as long as he wished.”

Politico was the first to report the news.