John McCann is one part Tea Party and two parts #MAGA. The New Jersey Republican announced his bid for Congress citing a bloated $1.3 trillion omnibus and condemning what he sees as the failure of GOP leadership to secure funding for President Trump’s border wall. Summing up, McCann is about limited spending and border security.
That platform, and a generous stipend, has attracted former White House adviser Sebastian Gorka.
“McCann was endorsed by Sebastian Gorka,” a McCann aide told me. “He paid him $5,000 [in] travel and other expenses to come to New Jersey, host a fundraiser, and campaign with him throughout the day.”
And during our brief interview Friday, it seems there is only one man McCann admires more than Trump. “I was very lucky to have his endorsement,” he said. “I am very honored to have his endorsement,” he said before adding that the two “see eye to eye on most of those issues.”
McCann could use the help. He is running for a chance to challenge Rep. Josh Gottheimer, the Democrat who dispatched conservative Rep. Scott Garrett in 2016. First he needs to win the primary, and that’s where Gorka comes in.
In Washington, Gorka is anathema. Outside the Beltway, Gorka is a rock star. That star power helped McCann pack a March 28 meet-and-greet fundraiser and, according to the the aide’s personal story, led the candidate to declare, “Dr. Sebastian Gorka is a true American hero.”
Out of the White House but not out of influence, Gorka has landed on Fox News, endorsed a crop of GOP candidates, and continued to advise the president. Last week, the Daily Beast reports, Trump had his former adviser over to the White House for dinner. According to one source, the president even joked that he “missed” Gorka.
That has only increased demand for Gorka. Before supporting McCann in New Jersey, he looked west, endorsed Republican Danny Tarkanian in Nevada — then a candidate for Senate — and collected another $5,000 in “speaking fees.” Asked in February whether he sold his endorsement to Tarkanian, Gorka said it was an “honorarium” and added that an endorsement sale “would be illegal.”
When reached for comment for this story, Gorka answered: “Get a life you hack. You’re not a journalist so I have nothing to say to you and I’m blocking this email.”
Update: After publication of this article, McCann contradicted the account put forward by his aide tweeting that “my campaign did not pay Gorka a penny” and that “the statement by my aide is simply not true.” During subsequent follow up interviews Monday night, two aides said the campaign is working on, but still hasn’t finalized, a contract with Gorka.
