According to Vanity Fair, on Tuesday afternoon, Congressman Jamaal Bowman approached a group of reporters and photographers gathered in front of the US Capitol building, asking who they were waiting for. The answer was Kevin McCarthy, who was supposed to be having a meeting with President Joe Biden regarding the debt. However, his day wasn’t going as planned. That afternoon, a Manhattan jury found former president Donald Trump liable for sexually abusing and defaming writer E. Jean Carroll, resulting in a $5 million civil penalty. On top of that, CNN reported that House Republican George Santos had been charged by federal prosecutors in New York. Despite the tumultuous news cycle, McCarthy largely avoided discussing the Trump news, while other Republicans rushed to defend the former president.
During a press conference after his meeting at the White House, a reporter asked McCarthy if he would support both Santos and Trump. McCarthy briefly touched on Santos but avoided discussing the Carroll verdict. He stated that he would follow the precedent set with other lawmakers who faced indictments, such as Senator Bob Menendez and former Representative Jeff Fortenberry. McCarthy suggested that if Santos was found guilty, he would need to resign, just as he had told Fortenberry. (All charges against Menendez were ultimately dismissed.) When asked about Trump, McCarthy simply said, “I don’t know. I’ve been in meetings,” before moving on.
However, despite McCarthy’s reluctance to address the situation, other Republicans were quick to defend Trump. Senator Tommy Tuberville of Alabama said the verdict made him want to vote for Trump “twice,” while Senator Rick Scott of Florida echoed Trump’s denials. When pressed on his support for Trump, Scott replied, “I don’t know the facts. It’s a New York jury too.” Other senators also cast doubt on the verdict, solely because it was issued in New York. Senator Lindsey Graham stated, “When it comes to Donald Trump, the New York legal system is off the rails,” while Senator Marco Rubio called the jury and the case itself “a joke.”
Even Mike Pence, who is reportedly contemplating a 2024 presidential run, refrained from condemning Trump on Tuesday. In an interview with NBC News’ Dasha Burns, the former vice president stated that he had never witnessed or heard about Trump’s behavior during his time serving alongside him. When asked if Trump’s being found liable for sexual abuse should disqualify him from running for president again, Pence said that was a question for the American people.
Senator Mitt Romney was one of the few Republican voices on Tuesday to openly criticize Trump in the wake of the verdict in the rape case. Romney hoped that the American people would reach the same conclusion as the jury and decide that Trump was not fit to be the nominee for president. The Utah senator stated, “He is in no position to be the president of the United States.” Overall, while McCarthy may have avoided the topic of Trump, the former president’s presence in the news cycle continues to be a hotly debated topic among politicians and the public alike.
