There is no end to the negative headlines surrounding the opposition US Republicans. A Republican lawmaker on Tuesday accused House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who was ousted in October, of elbowing him in the kidneys. Meanwhile, a conservative senator challenged an invited witness to a fight at a congressional hearing.
In the first incident, Representative Tim Burchett accused his colleague McCarthy of elbowing him in the back as he walked past in a congressional hallway during an interview.
“I got an elbow in the back and it caught me off guard because it was a blow in the kidneys,” the right-wing hardliner, who was one of eight Republicans to vote for McCarthy’s removal at the beginning of October, told the news channel CNN. “I turned around and there was Kevin.” He ran after the former “speaker,” which led to a verbal argument.
McCarthy denied this account to reporters and maintained that he did not hit Burchett. Representative Matt Gaetz, who had proposed McCarthyy’s removal in the dispute over budget policy, filed a complaint with the Ethics Committee of the Chamber of Congress.
Meanwhile, there was another incident at a Senate hearing: Conservative Senator Markwayne Mullin from the state of Oklahoma challenged union leader Sean M. O’Brien to a fight. Mullin read out an earlier tweet in which O’Brien called him a “clown” and wrote: “Stop playing tough guy in Senate hearings. You know where to find me. Anywhere, anytime, cowboy.” A video on X, formerly Twitter, shows the incident.
The senator and former martial artist then said they could “finish” the issue like “adults” right now. When O’Brien replied, “That’s okay, perfect,” Mullin stood up and motioned to take off his wedding ring as if before a fight.
Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders immediately intervened and asked O’Brien to sit back down. “You are a United States Senator.” Mullin and O’Brien continued their war of words despite Sanders’ efforts to calm the situation. Sanders added: “God knows the American people have enough contempt for Congress. Let’s not make it worse.”
In the gallery: The pool of Republicans who have presidential ambitions has become smaller. However, the clear favorite for the candidacy remains Donald Trump, who confidently leads all polls.
