House Republicans express frustration with minority leader Kevin McCarthy
Kevin McCarthyHouse, the Democrat hails the resolution to expel Marjorie Taylor Greene from the McCarthy Congress to meet with Trump in Florida. Video shows Rep. Greene calling Parkland a ‘coward’ MORE (R-California), highlighting the divisions at the conference after the January 6 uprising on Capitol Hill.
Those who criticize McCarthy say his message was inconsistent. They notice that he is sometimes criticized President Trump
Donald TrumpFBI says California extremists may have targeted the Newsom House Democrat in a resolution to expel Marjorie Taylor Greene from Congress Facebook to reduce political content on the MORE platform for his role in the crowd’s attack on the Capitol, only to reverse the course later.
They also say that McCarthy sent different messages through Rep. Liz Cheney
Elizabeth (Liz) Lynn Cheney State-level Republicans destroyed by the division after the loss of Trump Former lawmakers urge the leadership to focus on unity On Track: Republican Party little interest in post-election introspection MORE (Wyo.), The third leader of the Republican Party in the House, who voted to impeach Trump and now faces calls for his removal from the leadership.
McCarthy, who is due to meet Trump in Florida on Thursday, is also taking over the rep. Marjorie Greene (R-Ga.), Who raised questions about the veracity of the school shootings and made comments calling for violence against Democratic officials. The posts led to requests that she lose seats on committees and be removed from Congress.
“It is difficult to find out where he is coming from because one minute he says censure the president and he is responsible for that and the next minute he is stepping back and changing his position,” said a Republican lawmaker, who believes in Trump’s rhetoric ahead of mutiny deserves to be scolded.
This legislator criticized McCarthy, saying that “everything has to do with his political ambition and not about being a leader of principles that will lead us to the majority”.
McCarthy’s office declined to comment on this story.
McCarthy, who was a close ally of Trump during his presidency, said Trump had some responsibility for the January 6 mob attack on Capitol Hill in a January 13 speech arguing against Trump’s impeachment.
But at a press conference on Jan. 21, he told reporters that he did not believe Trump “provoked” the crowd “if you hear what he said at the rally.”
He said Cheney should remain in the lead, but he also told journalist Greta Van Susteren: “I support her, but I also have concerns”.
Critics say he is trying to play both sides of the debate and is undermining confidence in his leadership.
McCarthy, like the Republican leaders before him, faces a difficult task in leading a Republican caucus that is being pulled in different directions by members like Cheney, who want to step away from Trump, and a large number of Republican lawmakers who are solidly in the Trump group camp.
Trump’s energy is also more pronounced at the bases of the Republican Party, which put pressure on all members of McCarthy’s conference.
It is a dilemma that precedes the rise of Trump and that the two Republican leaders before McCarthy, former speakers John Boehner
John Andrew BoehnerDoes the GOP break your addiction to show business? House conservatives plan to expel Liz Cheney, former Boehner mayor, after Capitol violence: ‘The Republican Party must wake up’ MORE (R-Ohio) and Paul Ryan
Inauguration of Paul Davis RyanBiden marked by conflict of hope and fear The Hill’s 12:30 Report: Images and Sounds of Inauguration Day Revealing the Power of Forgiveness – Let the Speaker and Congress Have a Voice MORE (R-Wis.), Also had to deal with.
However, McCarthy probably faces a greater challenge than his predecessors, due to the rise of Trump in the past four years and the schism in the Republican Party after the loss of the majority of the White House and Senate and the violent attack on the Capitol.
“The GOP is at a crossroads and we have a decision to make: will we continue on a path that sows discord or will we start to rebuild our party? Kevin should consider meeting with members who don’t like political theatricality and are eager to get things done, ”a critical member of conservative House Freedom Caucus told The Hill.
“If he did, I think he would understand how much support he has when he stands up to members who tend to put their own ambitions before the interests of the American people.”
Republican Party lawmakers who would like to see McCarthy challenge the right to his conference and Trump warn that they are likely to lose seats, and not win, if he does not.
Some have argued that the successes the Republican Party saw in November in terms of tipping the seats may be at risk in the wake of the insurrection, with some fearing that if the party continues to attach itself too much to Trump, it could hurt them in busy districts. suburban to resume the majority. These voices warn that the conference is in danger of shrinking to an area inhabited only by those who can win in heavily red districts.
“I think [McCarthy is losing the trust of some in the conference] because many of us see ourselves as forming the majority – it is easy to be brave in these R + 23 chairs, ”said a GOP lawmaker in a competitive district.
“When you have primaries and generals you have to follow the line, and part of the thing that I think he forgot is, yes, we won seats. Why? Because we play in our districts, we don’t subscribe to the Trump that will take us [mentality]. We went back and talked about the things we are doing. “
Although conservatives have clashed with McCarthy in the past, a senior conservative aide said there are currently no major complaints against the California Republican for that party faction.
And several lawmakers argue that the California Republican is navigating the current circumstances as best he can in the current climate.
“I think at the end of the day we will be a majority in two years because Democrats are doing ridiculous shit right now,” said one member. “And I think everyone would have liked to have done something different for the period between the November election and now. I think he did a B + job. ”
Several Republican Party lawmakers said they felt McCarthy’s focus on retaining support from Freedom Caucus members – the group that kicked out BoehnerJohn Andrew BoehnerDoes the GOP break your addiction to show business? House conservatives plan to expel Liz Cheney, former Boehner mayor, after Capitol violence: ‘The Republican Party must wake up’ MORE and impaired his ability to obtain the Speaker’s hammer in 2015 – could alienate a considerable part of the conference that supported and helped him rise through the ranks.
“At the moment, he is trying to please everyone and I think we have some irreconcilable short-term differences. I think he’s really playing with fire, because if they push to depose Liz, there will be a conversation about [House Minority Whip] Steve [Scalise (R-La.)] and Kevin too, ”said a Republican Party legislator.
“They [the Freedom Caucus] will turn on him, and he’s trying to avoid it, and maybe he can do it successfully, but he’s losing confidence, I think, from most of the conference right now that they don’t say that. ”
The loss of corporate PAC money to members who voted to contest the election results could also create problems for the California Republican.
McCarthy – who voted against certification in Arizona and Pennsylvania – publicly rejected the corporate PAC’s loss of money, telling reporters that he “is not at all” concerned with the fundraising figures this quarter. But he also did damage control with K Street, suggesting there are concerns.
“He’s trying to calm donors,” a Republican donor recently told The Hill.
Rep. Guy Reschenthaler
Guy ReschenthalerTapper faces Republican Party lawmakers over criticism of the Afghan vet’s Electoral College vote READ: Republicans who voted to contest election results Cleaver concludes Congressional prayer with ‘amen and woman’ MORE (Pa.), A member of the Republican Party leadership, expressed confidence that McCarthy will prevail in the long run.
“He’s the most prolific fund-raiser we’ve ever had, he’s our best recruiter. And he is our best strategist. Also, if you need proof that we took back chairs when we lost the Senate and the White House – this is not a coincidence, it is not an accident, this is 100 percent Kevin McCarthy. “
During a political call on Wednesday, McCarthy told conference members that he would no longer tolerate members publicly attacking each other, adding that he allowed it to last longer than it should, assuming he would have died, according to two sources in the call.
“There are no more attacks on each other. Cut that shit. If you’re spending more time on Twitter than talking to your constituents, you’re doing it wrong, ”he told members.
And in a letter sent to members of his conference on Monday, the Republican Party leader asked them to unify and “lower the political temperature” and concentrate on offering a contrast to the policies of the Biden government.
Some senior Republican sources said they saw his tone as a positive step in moving the conference forward.
Scott Wong and Alex Gangitano contributed.