After two physical altercations with Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) is convinced that the former speaker “needs help.”
In a recent interview on CNN’s “The Lead,” Kinzinger spoke about the incidents that he hinted at in his new book, “Renegade: Defending Democracy and Liberty in Our Divided Country.”
Drawing attention to the Congressman’s claims, host Jake Tapper stated, “You are a combat veteran. You served in Iraq, Afghanistan, and you have watched many politicians speak as if Congress itself were a battlefield. They want to score points for their side no matter the costs. This week a Republican lawmaker accused Kevin McCarthy of giving him a sucker elbow to his kidneys. In the book, you write about two physical altercations with McCarty. Tell us what happened.”
Kinzinger began by recounting the first incident, stating, “I’m kind of standing in the back of the House, leaning over that gold railing, just kind of watching what’s going on, talking to people that walked by. And I get – wham! – I get shoulder-checked. Never had that happened on the floor of the House. And I turn, and Kevin McCarthy’s already passed me. And my initial reaction is that we’re friends, and I’m like, wait, we haven’t been friends in a year. That was serious.”
He went on to describe a second encounter, which he said happened three weeks after the first one. According to him, he and McCarthy were passing by each other on the House walkway when the former speaker shoulder-checked him.
“And so the interesting thing is, what are the chances that I write about this in a book, it comes out, he does it to this guy from Tennessee, and then he’s saying like, ‘It was an accident.’ That’s never happened to me from anybody else,” he added.
Kinzinger expressed his deep concerns about McCarthy’s behavior, stating, “Kevin McCarthy has compromised his values so much that he is lashing out on the people calling him out. Honestly, I hope he gets help. I think he needs to because his identity was wrapped up in being a speaker. I was a threat to that on January 6, and others are there a threat to that now. They actually took it away. So he is an angry man. When you physically lash out, it goes to show something is broken.”
Kinzinger’s remarks come after Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) accused McCarthy of giving him an elbow shot from behind while he (Burchett) was speaking to a reporter in a basement hallway of the Capitol. The shove was said to be a result of a beef between the two since McCarthy’s removal from his speakership position on October 3rd.
Burchett had joined seven other House Republicans who voted with every present House Democrats to vacate the speaker’s chair. The final vote was 216 to 210 in favor of the motion to remove McCarthy.
🚨BREAKING: All 8 Republicans Who Voted to Remove Kevin McCarthy From Speaker Are Willing to Accept “Censure, Suspension, or Removal From the Conference” In Order to Elect Jim Jordan as Speaker.
The 8 Republicans:
1. Matt Gaetz
2. Ken Buck
3. Tim Burchett
4. Eli Crane
5.… pic.twitter.com/VwO54F7PEt— Ian Jaeger (@IanJaeger29) October 20, 2023