Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy strongly affirmed that it is a “good idea” for the Republican Party to nominate Donald Trump despite his recent criminal conviction.
The former president was found guilty on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to conceal hush money payments intended to cover up alleged affairs ahead of the 2016 election. Sentencing is scheduled for July 11, and Trump has announced his intention to appeal the verdict.
Trump remains the presumptive Republican nominee, marking the first time a major U.S. party has nominated a convicted felon for president. Many conservatives argue that Trump’s criminal status will actually strengthen his campaign for the White House.
In an appearance on CNN’s “Inside Politics” on Sunday, McCarthy reiterated his support for Trump when questioned by Manu Raju about the conviction.
“Obviously, you’ve made your views known about how you disagree with the verdict in the Trump criminal trial,” Raju said. “But you know politics. Is it a good idea to—separating out your view of the verdict—is it a good idea for the Republican Party to nominate a convicted felon?”
Without hesitation, McCarthy responded, “Listen, is it a good idea that Donald Trump is the nominee? The answer’s 100% yes. Will Donald Trump win this presidency? The answer is yes. It’s interesting. I was watching the earlier part of your show, and I get it. The verdict has just come in. The question is, should it have even gone to trial? The majority of Americans understand that if Donald Trump did not run for president, this never would’ve even gone to trial.”
After alleging the case against Trump was “politically motivated,” McCarthy was asked again by Raju about the potential political fallout and whether the conviction might alienate independent and women voters.
“I think this is the part that CNN is missing: this is a reelection of Joe Biden for president,” McCarthy replied. “Joe Biden is running on the idea that democracy is on the ballot and promoting Bidenomics. These are the issues that people are opposed to. Do people want four more years of this? This is where people are missing what is really going on with the American public.”
“So you’re basically saying this is not gonna matter to voters come November?” Raju asked.
“I’ll put an asterisk there because it’s still new,” McCarthy conceded. “People will have some concerns about it, but it’s not gonna determine this election.”
