The Republican National Convention in Milwaukee became the stage for a dramatic confrontation between Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
During a CNN interview with McCarthy on the convention floor, Gaetz unexpectedly interrupted, mocking the former speaker by asking, “What night are you speaking? Are you speaking tonight?” McCarthy, attempting to maintain composure, continued his interview while addressing Gaetz’s presence indirectly.
“The person who raised the issue, he’s got an ethics complaint about paying, sleeping with a 17-year-old. That’s the way they would go, so that’s the biggest challenge we have,” McCarthy stated, referencing the ongoing investigations into Gaetz’s conduct.
The incident didn’t end there. Gaetz continued his taunt, saying, “If you took that stage you would get booed off of it.” However, Richard Porter, reportedly an Illinois National Committeeman, intervened, telling Matt Gaetz to “Shut up” and not to be an “a**hole.” SEE VIDEO:
In a subsequent interview with NBC News Now, McCarthy didn’t mince words about the encounter: “I think it shows exactly who Matt Gaetz is.” He further elaborated on their contentious history, alleging that Gaetz had attempted to leverage him to halt an ethics investigation.
“Well, it’s all about, he had an ethics complaint four years ago that he paid an underage girl and she has come to [the House Ethics Committee]. And he came to me to try to leverage me to stop the ethics investigation. That’s illegal, I’m not doing that. If I had to lose my job over holding up the law. He tried to utilize that I kept government open. Think about that, I kept government open and he tried to make a motion to remove me.”
This public display of discord comes at a time when the Republican Party is striving to project unity. McCarthy had earlier claimed, “What you’re seeing here is a more united Republican Party,” a statement that the Gaetz interruption seemed to contradict.
