Kevin McCarthy Accused Of Shoving GOP Rep. Who Voted To Oust Him — Leading To Chase Through Capitol

Forbes Business Breaking Kevin McCarthy Accused Of Shoving GOP Rep. Who Voted To Oust Him — Leading To Chase Through Capitol Sara Dorn Forbes Staff Politics Following Click to save this article. You’ll be asked to sign into your Forbes account.

Nov 14, 2023, 12:02pm EST Press play to listen to this article! Got it! Updated Nov 14, 2023, 12:23pm EST Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Topline Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif. ) allegedly shoved Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.

) after a GOP conference meeting in a Capitol building hallway Tuesday, Burchett told multiple reporters —more than a month after Burchett and seven other Republicans voted to remove McCarthy as speaker. Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.

) is seen outside a House Republican Conference speaker election . . .

[+] meeting in Longworth Building on Tuesday, October 24, 2023. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images) CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images Key Facts Burchett, who had voted to oust McCarthy as speaker weeks earlier, was speaking to NPR reporter Claudia Grisales when McCarthy walked by and pushed Burchett hard enough for him to “lunge” toward Grisales, she tweeted , adding that Burchett initially appeared to think the shove was in jest. But when Burchett asked McCarthy to explain himself, he kept walking, prompting Burchett to chase after McCarthy, who denied shoving him, with Burchett saying, “you got no guts, you did so .

. . the reporter said it,” and then calling McCarthy a “jerk.

” McCarthy told CNN “I didn’t shove or elbow him, it’s a tight hallway. ” Burchett described the shove as “a clean shot to the kidneys,” in an interview with CNN , and said it was the first interaction he and McCarthy had since McCarthy was ousted. Crucial Quote Burchett called McCarthy a “bully with $17 million and a security detail” to CNN, referencing McCarthy’s fundraising prowess: “He’s the type of guy that when you’re a kid, would throw a rock over the fence and run home and hide behind his momma’s skirt.

” Tangent Another physical altercation nearly broke out simultaneously on Capitol Hill Tuesday, when Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla. ) challenged Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien to a fight during a Senate committee meeting.

“Stand your butt up,” Mullin told O’Brien, rising from his chair at the dais and prompting Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt. ) to diffuse the situation, video shows .

“Stop it . . .

you’re a United States senator. Sit down,” Sanders said. Mullin and O’Brien have repeatedly engaged in explosive arguments and name-calling on Capitol Hill in recent months, leading Mullin, a former mixed martial arts fighter, to challenge O’Brien to a MMA fight for charity in June .

Mullin, who owned non-union plumbing companies before he was elected to Congress, has accused O’Brien of charging unfair union dues to pay his own salary, while O’Brien has called Mullin a “greedy CEO,” a “clown” and a “fraud. ” Key Background Burchett joined seven other Republicans in voting to remove McCarthy from his leadership role on October 3, an unprecedented move that made him the first speaker in history to ever be ejected from the job. McCarthy has vowed to serve the rest of his term, but told CNN in an interview which aired Sunday that he is considering stepping down from Congress at the end of his term in 2024—marking a reversal from statements he made in the days after his removal, when he promised to run for re-election.

McCarthy has repeatedly railed against the eight Republicans, led by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla. ), who voted to remove him, accusing Gaetz in the Sunday CNN interview of bringing the effort to raise his profile as the “TV congressman” and accusing Rep.

Nancy Mace (R-N. C. ) of “flip-flopping,” while predicting she wouldn’t win re-election.

A downtrodden McCarthy mourned the loss of his leadership role, telling CNN “I want to be at the table” and that he hasn’t spoken with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N. Y. ) since his removal.

Burchett also said he has not spoken to McCarthy. MORE FROM FORBES McCarthy Ousted: First House Speaker Ever Booted From The Job By Sara Dorn MORE FROM FORBES Republicans Who Ousted McCarthy Say They’ll Take Punishment In Exchange For Jordan Votes By Sara Dorn MORE FROM FORBES McCarthy Denies Reports He’s Considering Resigning From Congress After Being Fired From Speakership By Sara Dorn Follow me on Twitter . Send me a secure tip .

Sara Dorn Editorial Standards Print Reprints & Permissions.