You’d be forgiven for losing track of the retribution shenanigans former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) has been up to since he was ousted from Republican leadership and resigned from Congress.
The booted speaker has been on a revenge tour of sorts since he left Washington at the beginning of the year. He and his allies have been hard at work recruiting, endorsing and helping fundraise for primary challengers to the former colleagues who voted strip him of his gavel, like Reps. Nancy Mace (R-SC) and Bob Good (R-VA). But he’s saved his most fiery vengeance for Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who both made his speakership hell and initially filed the motion to vacate, which led to his ousting.
McCarthy officially endorsed Gaetz’s Republican primary challenger Aaron Dimmock in an interview with Politico published Wednesday. A close ally of McCarthy’s also admitted to the publication that they’d played a role in screening Dimmock ahead of his candidacy.
In backing Dimmock, McCarthy officially hit the point of no return in his feud with Gaetz by comparing his former colleague to President Biden’s son, the deadliest of the seven in the Republican-on-Republican cordiality handbook.
“Gaetz is the Hunter Biden of the Republican Party,” McCarthy said. “He’s got an opponent who is pro-life, pro-Second Amendment, trained at Pensacola, went to the Naval Academy and flew jets to defend us while Gaetz was getting kicked out of high school, buying coke and paying minors for sex.”
McCarthy was, of course, referring to the House Ethics Committee investigation into allegations of Gaetz’ drug use and sexual activity with a minor, among other things. That investigation, and the fact that McCarthy didn’t quash it as speaker, was reportedly a major factor in Gaetz’ decision to push for his ousting.
In response to the hate crime that is invoking Hunter, Gaetz essentially dared McCarthy to take things outside, as Republican Men are wont.
“I whooped Kevin McCarthy in Washington. I don’t think he’s going to fare better when I’m playing home-field advantage in North Florida,” he said.
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