Donald Trump and Kevin McCarthy.Photo: Michael Kovac/WireImage
Former House SpeakerKevin McCarthythinks thatDonald Trumpneeds to focus on “rebuilding America,” rather than “revenge.”
In aninterviewwith CBS News' Robert Costa that aired Sunday, McCarthy said, “What President Trump needs to do in this campaign, it needs to be about rebuilding, restoring, renewing America. It can’t be about revenge.”
After Costa noted that Trump is “talking about retribution, day in, day out,” McCarthy responded: “He needs to stop that. He needs to stop that.”
When Costa also asserted that Trump isn’t known for heeding the advice of others, the recalled House speaker pushed back, saying, “He will adapt when he gets all the facts” and adding that “America doesn’t want to see the idea of retribution.”
Then-House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy with then-President Donald Trump in February 2020.David McNew/Getty
McCarthy made headlines earlier this year when he suggested thatTrump may not be the GOP’s best presidential nomineein 2024.
“Can he win [the 2024 presidential] election? Yeah he can,” McCarthy said in an interview with CNBC in June. “The question is, is he the strongest to win the election? I don’t know that answer.”
But rather than endorse the former president at the time, the California Republican allegedly made Trump a promise: that the House of Representatives would vote to expunge both of his impeachments before lawmakers go on recess in August. McCarthy, however, insisted there was no such deal made.
Kevin McCarthy speaks to reporters just days before colleagues voted to recall him as House speaker in an unprecedented move.Nathan Howard/Getty
Nathan Howard/Getty
In his interview, which was filmed Friday and premiered two days later onCBS Sunday Morning, McCarthy did offer his endorsement of Trump, saying he believes the former president could beat Joe Biden in a 2024 rematch and expressing a willingness to serve in Trump’s Cabinet.
“In the right position. Look, if I’m the best person for the job — yes," McCarthy said when asked about working in a Trump White House.
Earlier this month, McCarthy announced he will be resign from Congress before the end of the year, just two months after beingousted as House speakerin an unprecedented rebuke from members of his own party.
Inan essay for theWall Street Journalrevealing his decision to retire after nearly 17 years in the House, McCarthy suggested that even after he leaves, he will continue his efforts to help recruit new candidates for office. “The Republican Party is expanding every day,” he wrote, “and I am committed to lending my experience to support the next generation of leaders.”
The longtime lawmaker, who spent nine months as the nation’s third-highest-ranked government official, then seemingly slighted the U.S. political system, writing, “It often seems that the more Washington does, the worse America gets.”
source: people.com
