CNN hosts John King and Dana Bash criticized House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy over his plans to meet with former President Donald Trump in Florida.
In his Thursday broadcast of “Inside Politics” King began by going after McCarthy’s consistency in responding to Trump’s alleged inciting of the mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.
“Kevin McCarthy has a clear goal, to be Speaker of the House. But he is anything but consistent as he pursues that goal. One week after the Capitol insurrection, the House Republican leader, Mr. McCarthy, said President Trump shared blame … Then worriedly the former president was angry and cursing McCarthy. Power, it seems, trumps principle,” said King.
“Today McCarthy is in Florida at Mar-a-Lago to make amends face to face, and to make clear that House Republicans still stand with a twice impeached president who, for two months, tried to overturn a free and fair election, and then inspired the attack on his own government,” King continued. “I get it, the former president still has sway over the base, but to go down, forgive me, to kiss the ring at this moment in time is pretty stunning.”
McCarthy condemned the violence at the Capitol via Twitter while it was taking place. He then said Trump shared blame in the riot during his speech on the House floor prior to his vote against impeaching the former president.
What is unfolding is unacceptable and un-American. It has got to stop.
— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) January 6, 2021
Bash chimed in on the planned Thursday meeting saying that McCarthy wants to “make nice” with Trump because he “is still such a force” in the Republican Party. She then stated that her question concerning the meeting is if McCarthy will “encourage” Trump to stop people “picking fights” with fellow Republicans “in his name.” (RELATED: Bill Kristol: ‘I Would Love’ If Republicans Threw Trump Overboard, ‘They Are Scared To’)
It isn’t yet clear what McCarthy and Trump will discuss in the meeting.
“I’ve talked to so many Republicans who are saying, ‘Enough already. We can’t focus on the issues … when the focus is on an intra-party war, a real war,'” Bash continued. “We’ll see if he gets that. I can tell you that I was told that one bit of advice that McCarthy got was not to go because it makes him look weak. He didn’t take that advice.”
“It makes him look weak. I think that would have been sound advice,” concluded King.