Add Kentucky Republican Matt Bevin to the list of Republicans attacking House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) for lashing out last week at conservative outside groups.
Boehner earned the ire of conservative Republicans for strongly criticizing Club for Growth, Heritage Action, and FreedomWorks for opposing a two-year bipartisan budget deal introduced by Senate Budget Committee Chair Patty Murray (D-WA) and her House counterpart, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI). In an interview with The Hill published Wednesday, Bevin, who is challenging Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), said that the speaker “felt that he had enough votes that he could get a little bit cocky with people.”
“And I think the smugness and arrogance with which he spoke, about some of his colleagues and the people that support his colleagues and about some of his constituents in Ohio, indicate a man that’s out of touch with the polls and with America.”
When Boehner criticized the outside groups, Bevin added, he “showed an arrogance and smugness that comes with being in office for too long.”
Similarly the Senate Conservatives Fund (SCF), which has endorsed Bevin, also attacked Boehner for his comments. An SCF email to supporters said Boehner was targeting conservatives in the same way that the Internal Revenue Service had targeted conservative organizations applying for tax-exempt status.
