GOP Leaders Privately Blasted Trump After January 6

“In the days after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol building, the two top Republicans in Congress, Rep. Kevin McCarthy and Sen. Mitch McConnell, told associates they believed President Trump was responsible for inciting the deadly riot and vowed to drive him from politics,” the New York Times reports.

McCarthy went so far as to say he would push Mr. Trump to resign immediately: “I’ve had it with this guy.”

Said McConnell to top advisers: “The Democrats are going to take care of the son of a bitch for us.”

“But within weeks both men backed off an all-out fight with Mr. Trump because they feared retribution from him and his political movement. Their drive to act faded fast as it became clear it would mean difficult votes that would put them at odds with most of their colleagues.”