'He was all in': McCarthy credits Trump for Speakership win after countless losses
After several days of infighting among House Republican lawmakers, Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) has been named speaker of the House. Now, he's revealed who he credits for his uphill victory.
According to Mediaite, McCarthy credited former President Donald Trump and his political influence for his ability to get over the massive hurdle he was facing with securing the top-ranking seat.
After 15 consecutive ballots since Tuesday, January 3, McCarthy was able to overcome opposition. In fact, the opposition was so great, McCarthy made history as "the first speaker who needed more than one roll call vote to ascend to the position since 1923," according to the news outlet.
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Speaking to reporters a little after 2:00 a.m. on Saturday, January 7, McCarthy lauded the former president and his political influence; something he believes have an impact on his ability to secure the seat.
"But I do want to especially thank President Trump. I don’t think you should doubt–anybody should doubt his influence. He was with me from the beginning… And he was all in. He would call me and he would call others," McCarthy said.
He added, "And he really was – I was just talking to him tonight – helping get those final votes. And what he’s really saying really for the party and the country, that we have to come together. We have to focus on the economy. We’ve got to focus, make our border secure. We’ve got to do so much work to do, and he was a great influence to make that all happen. So, thank you, President Trump."
McCarthy's win came after 14 consecutive losses as a result of a small faction of far-right House Republican lawmakers blocking the effort.
Per the news outlet, the last lost came as a result of "Reps. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and Lauren Boebert (R-CO) voted 'Present,' and four other Republicans voted for other candidates."
