When asked if he agreed with Boehner, McCarthy would only say that he sees himself as a “team captain”, not a “manager”.
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“I won’t be as tan”, McCarthy said Tuesday, joking about Boehner’s famously sun-kissed hue.
Boehner, R-Ohio, acknowledged on Sunday that he plans to tie up a few loose ends before leaving his post next month, so as not to leave “a dirty barn” for his successor. Where Boehner had no qualms with publicly blaming the more conservative members of the conference when they caused trouble, it’s in McCarthy’s nature to be more conciliatory.
Critics claimed Boehner did not fight hard enough against the Obama administration on issues such as illegal immigration and funding for Planned Parenthood. He was elected majority leader in 2014 and is viewed as an overwhelming frontrunner for the top job in the United States House.
SHAPIRO: Well, given that there is a sort of pragmatic caucus among the House Republicans and a sort of do-or-die caucus and that someone is going to have to lead this group, would you advise the new leader to try to win people with honey or punish the outliers?
Levin also said that McCarthy is exactly the same as former GOP leader Eric Cantor, who lost his last primary election in Virginia to a more conservative candidate.
“We want to make sure that we’re closer to the people – that they feel this is their government, they’re in charge, and we serve them”.
McCarthy was strongly critical of the Democratic president in a speech that could increase his appeal to hardline conservatives who sought to oust the current speaker, John Boehner, who abruptly announced his resignation on Friday.
“I am running for Speaker to work with my colleagues and make the case to the American people for conservative principles”, McCarthy wrote to his fellow Republican representatives and tweeted to the world on Monday.
McCarthy said immigration begins with securing the southern US border and fixing lapses in the country’s visa program.
“A speaker sets a culture in the House – and the culture you’re going to have is bottom-up, and everybody gets a voice”. “And then, we’ve got to figure out a path forward that, I think, brings our coalition together”.
As a newcomer in the California Assembly, McCarthy had also quickly taken on leadership roles. “A few of them are supporting me”, he said.
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“And if there’s one thing of a frustration that I have… the Senate has got to work”, he continued. “He’s a strong Christian and I know that he will move the ball down the field”.
