House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R–CA) on Friday sought to clarify his earlier comments regarding former President Donald Trump‘s potential strength in the 2024 election, asserting that he believes Trump is “stronger today“ than he was while running in 2016.
McCarthy‘s earlier remarks had raised eyebrows after he told CNBC that it was yet to be determined whether Trump was the “strongest“ candidate to win the 2024 nomination. The House minority leader, however, denied that he had said anything to suggest that he did not think Trump could prevail in the 2024 election.
“As usual, the media is attempting to drive a wedge between President Trump and House Republicans as our committees are holding Biden‘s DOJ accountable for their two–tiered levels of Justice,” McCarthy said in a statement.
“The only reason Biden is using his weaponized federal government to go after President Trump is because he is Biden‘s strongest political opponent, as polling continues to show. Just look at the numbers this morning – Trump is stronger today than he was in 2016.”
The recent DailyMail.com poll showed that in a Biden–DeSantis matchup, the Democratic candidate would take 44 percent of the vote to 43 percent. Trump and Biden were tied 46 percent each.
McCarthy concluded his remarks by affirming his support for a proposal from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R–GA) and GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R–NY), to “expunge“ both impeachments of Trump.
“I voted against both impeachments,” McCarthy said. “The second impeachment had no due process. What was raised this week was someone wanting to take impeachment to Biden to the floor. And I didn‘t think that was right because there‘s no due process, right? So shouldn‘t you be consistent, especially with the Constitution?”
The Speaker‘s relationship with President Trump has been described as “precarious“ by some, since an agreement on the debt limit was reached in May. Sources close to Trump have stated that the President did not appreciate the deal, though he did not express his displeasure publicly.
The Trump team has chosen not to comment on McCarthy‘s statements, but it is clear that the House Minority leader is standing firmly behind the former President. He has made it clear once again that he believes Trump is the strongest candidate to win the 2024 GOP nomination.
