Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy clashed with NBC News hosts on Monday in a controversial interview, pushing back against the double standards Democrats and the media appear to have applied to President Trump.
McCarthy joined NBC's inauguration coverage shortly after former President Biden delivered a series of speeches. preemptive pardon His family of five walked out the front door.
Former Republican lawmaker discusses how to reconcile Republican criticism of Biden's last-minute pardon with President Trump's campaign promise to pardon numerous people charged in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. I was asked if I would do it.
Flashback: Biden tells CNN he won't issue preemptive pardons before leaving office
After President Donald Trump was sworn in, First Lady Melania Trump, President Donald Trump, outgoing President Joe Biden, and First Lady Jill Biden attended the departure ceremony for Mr. and Mrs. Biden on the East Front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. Participate in. Trump will become president on January 20, 2025. (Chris Kleponis/Pool, via Reuters)
“This is the difference: This president told the American people on the campaign trail, 'If I'm elected president, I'm going to forgive these people,'” McCarthy countered. “Compare this to Joe Biden, who said he would never forgive his own son, and now, in his final day with 30 minutes left, he is forgiving his entire family.”
“It's terrible, it's terrible,” he continued. “Think about what everyone else has gone through. Why would you forgive your family? It makes no sense to me… All it can do is give you the cloud that you did something wrong.” All you have to do is cover up… What do you need to know that others don't? Why did you wait until 30 minutes ago? Why would you never forgive your son? Did you tell the American people? The difference here is whether you agree or disagree with what President Trump is trying to do, he told the American people. They put it out there in advance to him as a presidential candidate. “He's just keeping his campaign promise because he's considering whether to vote or not.”
Asked about concerns that President Trump might seek political retribution against political opponents in his administration, McCarthy said Democrats need to take a long hard look in the mirror.
“Look, this is what bothers me the most. For people who oppose President Trump, all they talk about is retaliation. I never saw him do it…He was talking about it, but I just saw the other guy retaliate against him and everyone else.
“Let me tell you this: When President Trump left office four years ago, everyone who worked for him came under fire. You couldn’t hire anyone… Anyone could work anywhere. Everybody had to go through a lawyer after that. Everybody was being accused, everybody was in the spotlight. “That President Trump had to go through that and that the Democrats helped elect him by indicting President Trump…” he continued.
McCarthy said Kash Patel, President Trump's nominee to head the FBI, “will uphold the rule of law.”
California Republican Congressman Kevin McCarthy at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, October 3, 2023, in Washington, DC. (Nathan Howard/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“I've seen people sit back and say, “I want to go after you because you might do something in the future. We live in America, right?'' Until you were innocent, but now they're going after this, they support the rule of law, but people saw the other side of this. [were] It was not right to bring charges against them. I think they tend not to use it for that reason. ”
For more information on media and culture, click here
NBC host Savannah Guthrie pushed back, arguing that prosecuting Trump for possessing classified documents was “not an abuse” of the rule of law.
“Obviously it was about President Trump, but at the exact moment you're saying that, there was President Joe Biden in his garage with documents,” McCarthy countered. .
“Here's the difference…he had the documents when he was a senator. I was part of the Gang of Eight – anytime, anywhere… there's no way a senator would take out classified documents. The deal is done. But, but” was he indicted? No. What did they say? Although he is too old, he is the current President of the United States. ” Mr. McCarthy continued.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at the inauguration ceremony for the 60th president of the United States in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC, on Monday, January 20, 2025. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“This is what we're talking about about fair treatment. People on the other side are saying, 'Oh my God, President Trump might do something in the future,' but he hasn't. Please give us time and if he did something wrong it will be discussed It's the right time to do this, but I see now that the nation has an opportunity to heal, and I see world leaders attending this inauguration, and I see hundreds of people against him. I've seen people who have spent millions of dollars sitting right behind him. And I'm excited,” McCarthy concluded. “I've seen some giants of the business saying they're changing their processes…to be fair.”
