The audio contradicted McCarthy’s claim that he did not urge Trump to resign after a deadly uprising by pro-Trump mobs. On Friday, several audio clips were released in which McCarthy says, “I was with this guy,” and blamed Trump for Capitol’s attack.
Trump was not offended by McCarthy’s comments and was glad the Republican leader did not follow through, which he saw as a sign of his continued grip on the Republican Party, and, according to two people, talked about the anonymity of discussing it. Personal conversation.
According to several GOP aides, the House Republicans are still waiting for Trump’s firm statement on how to determine whether to support McCarthy as their leader and potential spokesperson if the GOP wins a majority again in the November election.
“If Trump comes out and says [McCarthy] I have lost my faith, can not be a speaker, it is courageous. It will move people. If he releases a complaint – he’s complaining about McConnell all the time and not threatening his position in the leadership, ”said an aide to a Republican congressman who spoke anonymously to discuss private conversations.
Jan. 10, a 10-minute audio clip from 2021, released after the McCarthy controversy A statement Earlier on Thursday, he and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) Personally promised to oust Trump from politics following a Capitol attack by a pro-Trump mob.
During the call, Representative Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) Asked if Trump was likely to resign. McCarthy said he was skeptical, but noted that “I’m seriously thinking about that conversation with him tonight.”
McCarthy added that according to the audio clip, “my recommendation is that you resign,” when Democrats pushed Trump back with plans to oust the president. McCarthy said he did not think his attempt would persuade Trump.
McCarthy also said in the audio: “Now this is a personal fear I have. I do not want to engage in any conversation about Benz apology.
The report is based on the work of two New York Times reporters, Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns, whose book “This Will Not Pass: Trump, Biden and America’s War for the Future” will be published next month. The call lasted more than an hour. The audio clip of “The Rachel Maddow Show” aired on MSNBC on Thursday.
On Friday, Martin and Burns appeared on CNN and shared additional audio clips of Republican leadership calls in which McCarthy blamed Trump for the attack on Capitol and the president told him he had “some responsibility” for the uprising.
Jan. In the audio of a call on 10, 2021, McCarthy says: “I was with this guy. What he did was unacceptable. No one can protect it, no one should protect it.
A day later, in a separate call, McCarthy told Republicans, “But let me be very clear to all of you, I am very clear to the President: he is responsible for his words and actions. Ifs, ands or buts. Today I personally asked him: ‘ Is he responsible for what happened? Is he upset about what happened? ‘ He told me he had some responsibility for what happened and that he had to admit it, ”McCarthy said in the audio clip.
McCarthy’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
Cheney is the deputy chairman of the elected House committee investigating the deadly attack on the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob. In a statement, a congressional spokesman said: “The select committee has asked Kevin McCarthy to speak to us about these events, but he has so far declined. Representative Cheney did not record or leak the tape and did not know how it got to reporters.
In a statement, Representative Steve Scholes (R-La.), No. led by House. 2 A Republican spokesman dismissed the issue with a broader opposition to Democrats, but did not primarily defend McCarthy’s name.
“Whip Scholes’ only focus is to work with his colleagues to stop the radical Democratic agenda. Neither he nor anyone on his team recorded or leaked personal conversations between members, “said Lauren Fine.
House Democratic Campaign spokeswoman Nebate Petre was blunt in a statement: “Kevin McCarthy has proven himself to be a backboneless leader and now a bold-faced liar.”
The majority of those in the House Republican convention remained silent on Twitter as audio clips denying McCarthy were released. Some have refrained from commenting until Trump issues a statement, and some say it is not worth splitting the convention ahead of the pro-Republican midterm elections.
A few McCarthy allies came to his defense.
“For 29 weeks from now, Republicans will have a majority and Kevin McCarthy will be their speaker.” Has tweeted that Newcomer Representative. Tony Gonzalez (R-Tex), minutes after the audio played on MSNBC.
Representative. Ashley Hinson (R-Iowa), widely regarded by his peers as a potential newcomer to leadership positions, echoed this sentiment. Tweet The Republican convention on Friday called for a “united front to get the United States back on track.”
McCarthy told a spokesman for the California Republican Party that he “never told Trump he was calling for his resignation.”
A Report On Thursday morning, McCarthy called the newspaper report “completely false and misleading” and accused the media of “doing everything in its power to advance the liberal agenda”.
“Over the past year and a half, when President Trump has been in the White House, our country has proven to be better, and instead of solving the real problems facing Americans, the corporate media is more concerned with profiting from political maneuvers made from politically motivated sources,” McCarthy said.
After being one of the 10 Republicans who voted to oust Trump, McCarthy initially backed Cheney. But he then led the charge Get her out No. in House Leadership. 3 As a Republican, Trump punished him for publicly fighting him for his false claims and for his attempt to hold him accountable for the insurgency. The House has appointed Trump’s staunch supporter, Elise Stephanik (RN.Y.), to replace the GOP.
McConnell’s office declined to comment on the report. According to the Times, the Republican Party of Kentucky predicted that Senate Trump would be convicted, and said privately in the days following the Jan. 6 attacks: “I do not know if this is an indictment.”
Despite personal comments condemning Trump in the days following the Capitol attack, both McCarthy and McConnell soon backed the president.
In late January 2021, McCarthy Traveled to Trump’s personal Mar-e-Lago club In Florida, the two discussed GOP’s efforts to recapture the House Together they posed for the photo. Next month, McConnell He said he would support Trump “completely” If the former president wins the Republican nomination in 2024.
McCarthy has made it clear that he will seek the Speaker if the Republicans win a majority in the November election, for which he will need the support of the House Republicans in the January 2023 referendum.
Republican Adam Kingsinger (R-Ill.), A Trump critic and member of the select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attacks, reportedly said in a tweet on Thursday that McCarthy “had it” with Trump. “100 percent true.”
“McCarthy was on top of him until Trump was gone, and he felt he needed to. This film really revived Trump’s political career,” Kinsinger said, sharing a photo of the two ‘Mar-e-Lago. “Thank you Kev.”
According to the New York Times, in the days following the attack, McCarthy said Twitter wanted to close the accounts of some House Republicans, a spokesman who said he had made inappropriate comments. Lauren Bobert (Col.), associated with the rebellion.
McCarthy’s spokesman told the newspaper that “McCarthy never said that certain members should be removed from Twitter.” Boebert’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Paul Kane and Eugene Scott contributed to this report.
