PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said he does not believe Republicans will pay a price at the ballot box for increasingly rejecting Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger over their criticism of former President Donald Trump.
Cheney, formerly the third-ranking Republican in the House, and Kinzinger have met with strong GOP pushback over their decision to join the Jan. 6 select committee. The Republican National Committee went so far as to censure the lawmakers over the move earlier this year.
Despite coming out against Cheney in her Wyoming Republican primary race, McCarthy argued that the party remains a big tent that can still appeal to suburbanites, centrists, and women.
“Look, there’s a place for everyone in the Republican Party. We’ve got an opportunity to have people who’ve never been Republican join the party, independents and Democrats alike, and we’re seeing a real growth here. And that’s what we’re going to continue to work towards,” the California Republican told the Washington Examiner in an interview at the House GOP issues conference Wednesday.
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“Adam and Liz, they’re just focused on politics. They’re not focused on solving something. They don’t come to conference anymore otherwise, but they made their own decision.”
“I don’t think it’s feuding. I’ve endorsed [Cheney opponent Harriet Hageman]. I’m hosting a fundraiser for her, and I think you’ll see a large number of our members co-sponsoring that as well,” he added.
McCarthy previously tamped down conservatives’ calls to oust the lawmakers from the party.
Democrats have repeatedly slammed McCarthy for his criticisms of Cheney and Kinzinger and attempted to link vulnerable GOP lawmakers to scandals surrounding conservative firebrands like Reps. Madison Cawthorn of North Carolina and Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, with some recently calling for members to denounce their anti-Ukraine rhetoric.
McCarthy dismissed the notion that controversies connected to a handful of rabble-rousers will derail the GOP’s messaging strategy as election season heats up.
“I think the focus should be on solving America’s problems, especially rising costs, prices, gasoline price, the crime in our streets, our border not being secured,” he said.
“I think members should be focusing on that, and we’re going to have some differences of opinion. And that’s [because] we represent a lot of different Americans across this country, and there’s a right to have a difference of opinion,” McCarthy added. “I just don’t think there’s anything good about Putin.”
McCarthy asserted he believes the House GOP conference is “more united than we’ve ever been” but acknowledged that some splits on key issues may arise between factions of the party if they take back the majority.
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“I think we have a number of different caucuses. They’ll all express … something they care most about, and that’s always going to happen. But if you unite now around policies and you make the promise to the American public of what you’re going to do, they hold your feet to the fire to do that,” he said. “Do what you said you’re doing — everything will be fine.”
