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McCarthy tells GOP to stop attacking each other: ‘Cut that crap out’

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“Cut that crap out,” McCarthy told his members, according to two sources on the call. McCarthy said he’s had personal discussions with individual members and warned that a continued GOP vs. GOP battle will only benefit Democrats as his party aims to recapture the majority in next year’s midterms.

“No more attacks to one another,” he said, including over Twitter.

One GOP lawmaker, who asked not to be named, said that McCarthy’s message overall was upbeat and hopeful. “He said the only thing that can stop us from taking the majority is us.”

The internecine attacks have been relentless in recent days as much of the conference has sided with Trump while others have split from the former President, including Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, the No. 3 Republican, and nine of her colleagues who voted to impeach Trump on a charge of inciting an insurrection that led to the deadly Capitol riot on January 6. Trump’s defenders in the conference are trying to oust Cheney from her leadership position, while Cheney’s backers are confident they can beat back that effort, though the topic did not surface on Wednesday’s call, according to sources familiar with the matter.

The call, which was hosted by the National Republican Congressional Committee, was aimed at ensuring that members ponied up money to help win back the majority, with GOP members pledging more than $2 million to the party campaign committee.

And on the call, sources said, Republicans committed to filling the NRCC’s coffers, including controversial freshman Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. The Georgia Republican promised to pay her dues and transfer $175,000 to the NRCC, which prompted the committee’s chairman, Minnesota Rep. Tom Emmer, to thank her during the call, the sources said.

Greene herself has been engaged in a Twitter war with one fellow House Republican, Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger, who has warned his party not to follow her brand of politics. CNN reported Tuesday that Greene repeatedly indicated support for executing prominent Democratic politicians in 2018 and 2019 before being elected to Congress, which has drawn backlash from lawmakers including Kinzinger.

But McCarthy is eager to keep those disputes private. A spokesman for the GOP leader did not respond to a request for comment.

During the call, lawmakers also discussed other matters — including the decision by Speaker Nancy Pelosi to install metal detectors just off the House floor, something that has enraged many Republicans. North Carolina Rep. Richard Hudson urged his colleagues to not create scenes off the floor and in the presence of reporters — and to instead channel their objections internally so they can work to modify the system, the sources said.

McCarthy is scheduled to meet with Trump on Thursday, CNN confirmed. That meeting was first reported by Punchbowl News.

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Rep. Taylor Greene’s disturbing comments prompt McCarthy to respond

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  • Hundreds of posts and comments on Rep. Taylor Greene’s Facebook revealed disturbing past comments.
  • A spokesman for House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy told Axios he would have a conversation with Greene.
  • The freshman lawmaker has endorsed conspiracy theories that mass shootings were staged.
  • Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.

House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy’s office said in a statement to Axios Tuesday night that he was aware of “disturbing” comments Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene had made and/or endorsed before being elected to Congress in 2020.

A review of hundreds of posts and comments on Greene’s Facebook page revealed her past support of and engagement with a number of far-right, QAnon conspiracy theories. 

Greene repeatedly expressed support for assassinating leading Democrats on social media prior to her time in office, liking a Facebook comment in 2019 that said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi should get a “bullet to the head.”

CNN reported that in February 2019, Greene broadcast a Facebook Live video from inside Pelosi’s office saying the Speaker will “suffer death or she’ll be in prison” for treason.

The freshman lawmaker also reportedly endorsed conspiracy theories that the Sandy Hook shooting, which killed 26 people, including 20 elementary school children, and the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting that left 17 dead were both staged. 

In 2018, Greene agreed with a Facebook commentator who suggested 9/11 was an inside job, according to the progressive group Media Matters for America. 

“These comments are deeply disturbing and Leader McCarthy plans to have a conversation with the Congresswoman about them,” Mark Bednar, a spokesperson for McCarthy, told Axios.

This isn’t the first time McCarthy has had to deal with controversial remarks from among his ranks. In 2019, Iowa Rep. Steve King was stripped from his committee assignments after he publicly questioned why terms like “white nationalism” and “white supremacy” had become offensive. 

King’s comments drew criticism from members of both parties, and McCarthy ensured that he would take action against King after having “a serious conversation.”

In an August interview with The Dispatch, King said he thought McCarthy’s “welcome” of Greene was a double standard. 

After CNN reportedly reached out to Greene for comment, she tweeted a statement saying she’s had teams of people manage her social media pages over the years.

“Many posts have been liked,” she said. “Many posts have been shared. Some did not represent my views.”



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McCarthy says he told Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene he disagreed with her impeachment articles against Biden

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House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthyKevin McCarthyMcCarthy supports Cheney remaining in leadership amid calls for her to step down The Hill’s 12:30 Report: Biden hits the ground running on COVID Biden’s inauguration marked by conflict of hope and fear MORE (R-Calif.) said he spoke with Rep. Marjorie Greene (R-Ga.) about her efforts to move impeachment articles against newly-inaugurated President Biden.

In an interview with Greta Van Susteren, McCarthy said he disagreed with the first-term lawmaker’s efforts to oust Biden, but that she has a right to pursue impeachment.

“I called her. I disagree with that. That’s exactly what the Democrats did with President TrumpDonald TrumpIran’s leader vows ‘revenge,’ posting an image resembling Trump Former Sanders spokesperson: Biden ‘backing away’ from ‘populist offerings’ Justice Dept. to probe sudden departure of US attorney in Atlanta after Trump criticism MORE, and why we disagreed with when they wanted to come after him for purely political reasons,” McCarthy said. “I think Republicans are better than that. That this is one of the arguments we used against the Democrats, and I don’t think we should use it either.”

“She has a right to, as an elected member of Congress to submit those,” he added, “I just don’t think the timing and the case is right at this time, in this moment.”

Greene’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Hill.

The Georgia lawmaker said Thursday — the first full day of the Biden administration — that she had filed the articles of impeachment.

The text of the articles was not immediately available, but she hinted they accuse Biden of abusing his power while serving as vice president by allowing his son, Hunter Biden, to serve on the board of a Ukrainian energy company. 

“President Joe BidenJoe BidenRev. Barber says best way to undercut extremism is with honesty Biden requires international travelers to quarantine upon arrival to US Overnight Defense: House approves waiver for Biden’s Pentagon nominee | Biden to seek five-year extension of key arms control pact with Russia | Two more US service members killed by COVID-19 MORE is unfit to hold the office of the presidency. His pattern of abuse of power as President Obama’s Vice President is lengthy and disturbing. President Biden has demonstrated that he will do whatever it takes to bail out his son, Hunter, and line his family’s pockets with cash from corrupt foreign energy companies,” Greene said in a statement.

Biden has denied that his son’s position swayed his policymaking during the Obama administration, and an investigation into the matter by Senate Republicans found no wrongdoing by either Biden.

Greene’s announcement Thursday came after the House voted last week to impeach then-President Trump, making him the first president in history to be impeached on two separate occasions. 

The intervention by the House’s top Republican comes as lawmakers on both sides of the aisle look to turn down the political temperature after the Jan. 6 violent riot at the Capitol that resulted in the deaths of several people.

Greene has made a splash on Capitol Hill since she was sworn into office earlier this month. Her candidacy drew national attention after it was revealed that she had made comments in support of the outlandish QAnon conspiracy theory, and she has used her time in Washington to rail against masks and promote disputed claims that the presidential election was marred by widespread fraud.



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