Republican House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said he knows who recorded his remarks about former President Donald Trump after Jan. 6 and that he plans to reveal them.
In a recording published in the spring, McCarthy can be heard on separate Jan. 8 and Jan. 10 phone calls with Republican colleagues denouncing Trump in clear terms.
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“What he did is unacceptable. Nobody can defend that, and nobody should defend it,” he said, adding that he was going to advise the president to resign following the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
The Republican leader’s comments following the events of Jan. 6 differed somewhat.
While he didn’t support the impeachment of the president following the riot, McCarthy admitted, “The president bears responsibility for Wednesday’s attack on Congress by mob rioters. He should have immediately denounced the mob when he saw what was unfolding,” in a January floor speech.
About a month later, McCarthy seemingly changed his tune. “I was the first person to contact [Trump] when the riots” were underway, McCarthy told Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday. “He didn’t see it. [How] he ended the call was saying — telling me, he’ll put something out to make sure to stop this. And that’s what he did. He put a video out later.” This answer was much more generous to the former president than statements prior.
When the recording was released, revealing an unfiltered McCarthy’s thoughts as Jan. 6 was happening, his remarks since the event came back into question.
“I know who recorded it. I know who recorded me,” the House minority leader told Politico on Wednesday, revisiting the scandal.
He even claimed, “I’ll bring it forward,” reiterating that “I have it.”
McCarthy denied a report about his remarks on the recording before the actual audio became available.
My statement on the New York Times pic.twitter.com/PWi2WkoWzh
— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) April 21, 2022
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It’s unclear when the California congressman plans to unveil who recorded him.
