Jake Tapper Gives Unfiltered Response To Kevin McCarthy's Final Claim To Congress

The CNN anchor sarcastically likened the Donald Trump ally to a key historical figure.
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Retiring Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s (R-Calif.) final address to Congress on Thursday sparked a sarcastic response from CNN’s Jake Tapper.

The ousted House speaker, who recently endorsed the twice-impeached and four-times-indicted Donald Trump for president in 2024, closed his congressional career with a message for fellow Republicans.

“Do not be fearful if you believe your philosophy brings people more freedom,” he said. “Do not be fearful that you could lose your job over it.”

McCarthy added: “Do it anyways. I would do it all again.”

Tapper, reporting on the speech, sarcastically sniped live on CNN: “Ah, yes. ‘Do not be fearful.’ Words of courage from Kevin McCarthy, the Winston Churchill of our time.”

Critics on X, formerly Twitter, ripped McCarthy over the role he played in rehabilitating the image of Trump among Republicans when he visited the former president at his Mar-a-Lago home in the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection.

Trump is now Republicans’ runaway 2024 front-runner, with some polls suggesting he would beat President Joe Biden in key swing states if next year’s election is a replay of 2020.

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