On Tuesday morning, further details of the explosive phone discussion between House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy and Donald Trump on January 6 were made public.
As the former president’s supporters stormed the US Capitol last year, the two are said to have engaged in a heated argument.
But according to a new book extract published by Politico, McCarthy, who is still a strong supporter of Trump’s, was so incensed that he cursed at the party boss even as he dismissed the criticism of McCarthy and his associates.
After the crowd had already entered the Capitol, Trump said to him in a discussion that was previously corroborated by other legislators, “Well, Kevin, I think these folks are more furious about the election than you are.”
“More agitated?” According to reports, the California Republican screamed back. “They’re f***ing going to murder me!”
The passage is from the forthcoming book Weapons of Mass Delusion: When the Republican Party Lost Its Mind by writer Robert Draper.
McCarthy had harshly criticized Trump after the violence, but then changed his mind when he paid a visit to the late president at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida later that month.
When Trump’s future hung in the balance in the first few weeks after January 6, this trip served as one of the impetuses for his political comeback.
Last year, CNN broke the story of the call’s specifics, which Republican Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler later corroborated. The only 10 Republicans in her Washington caucus who voted to impeach Trump included the moderate Republican from that state.
McCarthy, who was still being avoided by Trump at the time, allegedly chastised Herrera Beutler for telling the public about their phone discussion, causing the congresswoman to break down in tears.
The shocking information comes from Unchecked: The Untold Story Behind Congress’s Failed Attempts to Impeach Donald Trump, a new book by Washington Post writer Karoun Demirjian and Politico reporter Rachael Bade that will focus on the former president and the GOP.
“After all I’ve done for you!” McCarthy allegedly shouted. “I alone am shouldering all the blame for defending the people from Trump!”
He allegedly exclaimed that he was “keeping the party together” and that no one else was.
“I have been collaborating with Trump to prevent him from going after Republicans like you, blowing up the party, and erasing all our effort,” she said. According to the book extract from the Post, the commander raged.
You ought to have visited me! Why did you approach the media? This is not a proper thank you.
The Post claims that Herrera Beutler, who allegedly had a strong friendship with McCarthy, started crying.
She allegedly informed McCarthy that she followed her “gut instinct” in her actions.
What were you expecting me to do? The legislator reportedly questioned, “Lie?
In a letter to the writers of the book, both MPs refuted the controversy.
Beyond the many mistakes, it is dramatized rather than being a true account of the events. McCarthy and Herrera Beutler allegedly remarked, “We know it’s inappropriate because we were the only two in the room for this talk.”
Herrera Beutler was defeated by Trump-backed rival Joe Kent in her primary in August.