McCarthy says he lost the speakership over ‘one person’ and an ethics complaint

Former Rep. Kevin McCarthy threw shade at Rep. Matt Gaetz, saying he’s the only reason he was ousted from the speakership because he wouldn’t help the lawmaker get rid of an ethics complaint.

After Mo Elleithee of Georgetown University’s Institute of Politics and Public Service suggested that Mr. McCarthy, California Republican, was ousted because of the “concessions” he made as speaker, the former congressman said he wanted to set the record straight.

“That is such a misnomer in life. Let me give you the truth about that, and I’ll give you the truth why I’m not speaker,” he said at the event Tuesday.

“It is because one person, a member of Congress, wanted me to stop an ethics complaint because he slept with a 17-year-old, an ethics complaint that started before I ever became speaker, and that’s illegal, and I’m not gonna get in the middle,” he said.

Mr. McCarthy said he doesn’t know whether the sexual misconduct allegations against Mr. Gaetz, Florida Republican, are true, but the “Ethics [committee] is looking into it.”

Mr. Gaetz is facing an investigation from the House Ethics Committee into whether he had sex with a minor while he served in Congress. The probe started roughly a year after the Justice Department closed an investigation into Mr. Gaetz without filing any charges.

He has denied the allegations. He shot back at Mr. McCarthy in an X post Wednesday.

“Kevin McCarthy is a liar,” Mr. Gaetz said. “That’s why he is no longer speaker.”

“Just ask the 224 people who voted to remove him,” he said.

The firebrand congressman was the one who introduced a motion to vacate against Mr. McCarthy last October, which resulted in losing his position as speaker. Seven House Republicans joined Democrats in voting to remove him.

The removal threw the House into chaos for weeks as members struggled to find someone to replace Mr. McCarthy. Speaker Mike Johnson, Louisiana Republican, has held the post since then.