McCarthy's dilemma. [View all]
We know the story well. McCarthy, for several days after the January 6 coup attempt, spoke like a moral, principled person. Then he visited Trump in Florida. After that, McCarthy acted as if he still supports Trump and believes The Lie.
But here's what likely happened in Florida:
Trump told McCarthy that the only way he'll ever become Speaker is if he'll be loyal to Trump, and only Trump. That's because presumably, Trump told McCarthy how many people in Congress would be implicated and/or directly connected to the conspiracy if it went public. Trump told McCarthy exactly who was on the bubble for complicity and who would be charged for direct aid in the coup attempt. There were enough Trumpian members so disgraced that an electoral purge in Congress would seem natural to all. Then it hit McCarthy that his party was really vulnerable and would lose all power quickly if the GOP joined with Democrats to get rid of Trump. So McCarthy took the survival road and switched to a positive spin regarding the coup. Now is the time that he pays the price.
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