Last Updated on November 12, 2022
Kevin McCarthy was nearly house speaker in 2015. Instead, the Freedom Caucus ended up negotiating a deal with Paul Ryan. The rest is history.
Lost in that year of political upheaval was the drama surrounding Kevin McCarthy’s exit.
McCarthy supposedly withdrew his consideration because of some inartful comments made about Hillary’s Benghazi scandal. From Politico:
They’re seizing on comments from Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) in which he boasted on national television that the panel’s work has hurt Hillary Clinton in the polls — a statement her supporters say vindicates their view that the panel is a politically motivated effort to damage her campaign.
Already, Republicans are distancing themselves from McCarthy’s remarks, even as he’s leading the race to be the next speaker of the House, and defending the panel they formed to investigate the 2012 attack on the Libya consulate. Democrats, on the other hand, have demanded that the panel be dissolved, with some Clinton allies even calling for McCarthy to abandon his bid to become speaker.
Naturally, this was not the real reason for McCarthy’s exit from the speakership.
The real reason McCarthy withdrew his name from consideration for House Speaker was his affair with Renee Ellmers.
You can also read that letter in its entirety here:
WALTER JONES - 10.6.15 Letter to McMorris Rodgers
The letter is resurfacing again as McCarthy has thrown his name into the ring to serve as House Speaker once more.
According to McCarthy, he’s GREAT! If you really want to read about McCarthy’s self-worship, scroll on down.
As NBC reports, it looks as if McCarthy might have problems with his bid for House Speaker.
There’s just one problem. As Politico notes, the Freedom Caucus has no candidate.
But maybe there is one.
Matt Gaetz has been pushing the idea of Donald Trump for Speaker for months now.
Indeed, Gaetz’s conversation about Trump as House Speaker goes back to 2021, as Forbes reported.
It remains to be seen which candidate conservatives will select to oppose McCarthy.
