What was Trump and Kevin McCarthy's 'expletive-laced' call amid Capitol riots all about? Shocking details revealed
Newly revealed details have shown that former president Donald Trump had a furious call with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy in the wake of the January 6 riots at the US Capitol that saw five people dead. Trump, according to lawmakers who were informed about the call later by McCarthy, told him that the protesters were more upset about the 2020 presidential election than the latter even as he begged the former to dissuade them.
CNN on Friday, February 12, reported about the fresh revelations, which several informed GOP lawmakers made to the network. “In an expletive-laced phone call with House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy while the Capitol was under attack, then-President Donald Trump said the rioters cared more about the election results than McCarthy did,” the report said. Trump, who was accused by his opponents of not inciting the rioters and condemning it too little too late, reportedly told McCarthy: “Well, Kevin, I guess these people are more upset about the election than you are.” The House minority leader insisted that the rioters were supporters of the former president and begged him to call them off.
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Trump’s remarks sparked off the heated conversation with the top Republican in the House who angrily told the president that the rioters broke into his office through the windows. “Who the f••k do you think you are talking to?” he reportedly hit back at the former president in the call.
According to the CNN report, the GOP members of the Congress, many of whom later joined the Democrats later to support the impeachment of Trump on charges of inciting the violence, said the former president’s words made it evident that he had no intention to call off the riots despite the lawmakers urging him to intervene. For many, it was even a dereliction of presidential duty.
'Trump not a blameless observer'
“He is not a blameless observer, he was rooting for them,” one Republican member of Congress said. “On January 13, Kevin McCarthy said on the floor of the House that the President bears responsibility and he does.” Trump eventually condemned the violence but his critics were not convinced. His condemnation came a week after the riots happened and he did it while facing the danger of his second impeachment in the House. Trump though did not take responsibility for the riots.
McCarthy, who condemned the disturbance at the Capitol harshly and called them "un-American", spoke to Trump from the besieged Capitol and argued with him over the intruding crowd’s composition.
Washington GOP Representative Jaime Herrera Beutler mentioned Trump saying that the insurrectionists cared more about the 2020 election than McCarthy in a town hall held earlier this week. She was among the GOP lawmakers who were briefed on the conversation and told the same to CNN.
“You have to look at what he did during the insurrection to confirm where his mind was at. That line right there demonstrates to me that either he didn’t care, which is impeachable, because you cannot allow an attack on your soil, or he wanted it to happen and was OK with it, which makes me so angry,” Beutler, one of 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump last month, was quoted as saying by CNN.
“We should never stand for that, for any reason, under any party flag,” she added, voicing her extreme frustration: “I'm trying really hard not to say the F-word.”
“I think it speaks to the former president's mindset,” Ohio GOP Rep. Anthony Gonzalez, who also voted to impeach Trump last month, said. “He was not sorry to see his unyieldingly loyal vice president or the Congress under attack by the mob he inspired. In fact, it seems he was happy about it or at the least enjoyed the scenes that were horrifying to most Americans across the country.”
According to several Republicans, the details of Trump’s call with McCarthy were important to the impeachment proceedings against Trump for they believe it brings to the fore the former president’s lack of action even as the violence broke out.
Neither Trump nor McCarthy, however, respond to requests for comments on the matter, the CNN report added.