April 23, 2022: The First Time Kevin McCarthy Was Caught on Tape Telling the Truth

With Kevin McCarthy caught on tape telling the truth again, 

this is what I wrote on July 13, 2018:

 

AT THIS POINT all good Americans might be wise to remember a May 2017 report from the Washington Post.

 

____________________ 

“There’s two people I think Putin pays. Rohrabacher and Trump.” 

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy

____________________

 

 

In a leaked recording of a meeting of top Republican lawmakers, in June 2016, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy can be heard joking, “There’s two people I think Putin pays: [Rep. Dana] Rohrabacher and Trump.” 

The Post explained: 

Some of the lawmakers laughed at McCarthy’s comment. Then McCarthy quickly added: “Swear to God.”

 

“This is an off the record,” [Speaker Paul] Ryan said.

 

Some lawmakers laughed at that.

 

“No leaks, all right?” Ryan said, adding: “This is how we know we’re a real family here.”

 

“That’s how you know that we’re tight,” [Rep. Steve] Scalise said.

 

“What’s said in the family stays in the family,” Ryan added.

 

The remarks remained secret for nearly a year….

 

Evan McMullin, who in his role as policy director to the House Republican Conference participated in the June 15 conversation, said: “It’s true that Majority Leader McCarthy said that he thought candidate Trump was on the Kremlin’s payroll. Speaker Ryan was concerned about that leaking.”

 

McMullin ran for president last year as an independent and has been a vocal critic of Trump.

 

When initially asked to comment on the exchange, Brendan Buck, a spokesman for Ryan, said: “That never happened,” and Matt Sparks, a spokesman for McCarthy, said: “The idea that McCarthy would assert this is absurd and false.”

 

After being told that The Post would cite a recording of the exchange, Buck, speaking for the GOP House leadership, said: “This entire year-old exchange was clearly an attempt at humor. No one believed the majority leader was seriously asserting that Donald Trump or any of our members were being paid by the Russians. What’s more, the speaker and leadership team have repeatedly spoken out against Russia’s interference in our election, and the House continues to investigate that activity.”

 

“This was a failed attempt at humor,” Sparks said.

 

And there you have it. As has so often been true where Russians and investigations are concerned, first you get lies from Republicans. Then the free press confronts the liars with evidence. 

Then the liars back-pedal furiously. 

Rep. Rohrabacher.

Once dubbed, "Russia's favorite congressman."

 

POSTSCRIPT: We now know that Rep. Rohrabacher traveled to Moscow during the 2016 campaign. We know he received documents from Yuri Y. Chaika, Russia’s prosecutor general, a post equivalent to the U.S. Attorney General.  

Rohrabacher denies using anything he received from Chaika to damage Hillary or the Democrats. (See: 7/18/18.)