Former President Trump and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said their relationship has not fractured after recordings surfaced this week of McCarthy saying he would advise former President Trump to resign if he is indicted after the January 6 riots at the Capitol.
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal From his Mar-a-Lago residence, Trump said he “didn’t like the call” McCarthy made to the GOP conference, but that their relationship remains good.
The New York Times published audio recordings this week of a GOP conference call on Jan. 10, 2021, held just days after the Capitol riots.
During the call, McCarthy said that if he was impeached, he would recommend that Trump resign.
“What I think I’m going to do is call him,” McCarthy said, according to the recording. “The only discussion I would have with him is that I think this will happen, and it would be my recommendation that you resign. I mean, that would be my opinion, but I don’t think he would accept it. But I do not know.
McCarthy had previously denied telling colleagues that Trump should resign.
Trump told the Journal that once McCarthy discovered “the facts,” he changed his stance.
“But almost immediately, as you know, because he came over here and we took a picture right there, you know, the support was very strong,” Trump said, adding that McCarthy changed his stance “when he got the facts.”
“I think it’s all a huge compliment, frankly,” Trump continued. “They realized that they were wrong and they supported me.”
McCarthy also told colleagues in the phone call that he was “crazy” with Trump.
“I want everyone to have all the necessary information. I’ve had it with this guy. What he did is unacceptable. No one can defend that, and no one should defend it,” McCarthy said on the recording of the call. first released on CNN Friday morning.
McCarthy also said Friday that his relationship with the former president remains intact, according to footage of the California Republican. captured by CBS reporter Musadiq Bidar.
The minority leader said he and Trump spoke twice on Friday and had a “good conversation” about the recordings.
“I never asked President Trump to resign,” McCarthy said.
Pressed on whether the House Republican leader ever thought Trump should resign, McCarthy delayed.
“No, I never asked the president to resign, I never thought he should resign,” McCarthy said.
The California Republican also claimed while speaking to reporters that his call with House leaders on Jan. 10 was “over the top,” adding that Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) had asked him about the 25th Amendment and needed “explain what else you would do.” to occure.”
“I just went through different scenarios, that’s all that happened,” McCarthy said, later saying that he was “never in the process of asking President Trump to resign.”
During his interview with the Journal, Trump did not directly say whether he would support McCarthy to become the House speaker if Republicans win back the House this fall.
“Well, I don’t know anybody else who’s running and I think I’ve actually had a really good relationship with him,” Trump told The Journal. “I like him. And apart from that brief period of time, I suspect he quite likes me.”
Reference-thehill.com