'Selling out to MAGA': CNN analyst delivers blunt verdict on Kevin McCarthy's latest maneuvers

On CNN Tuesday, longtime Democratic strategist Maria Cardona tore into House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), saying that he is selling his principles to the farthest-right elements of his party in a singular push for power.

This comes as Senate Democrats and Republicans close in on a deal to keep the government funded — and McCarthy is voicing his opposition to the process.

"Earlier today, Manu Raju said how Matt Gaetz, the MAGA Republican congressman, said McCarthy doesn't have the votes to be Speaker, and McCarthy says 'I do. Who do you believe, me or Matt Gaetz?'" said anchor Jake Tapper. "I thought, that's a tough question."

"That is a very tough question," said Cardona. "But ... he also said Republicans were going to govern, and focus on bringing solutions on inflation and crime and everything that they ran on. The first thing they announce? Investigations, possible impeachments, and now they're obsessed and focused on the speakership and what is Kevin McCarthy doing? He's selling out to his MAGA constituents in order to be able to get to the number that he needs to get for this and what this says to me, there's going to be a big split, if it can get any bigger, between the House Republicans and the Senate Republicans."

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Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), by contrast, is "speaking common sense," argued Cardona. "He wants to get this done, I believe. He wants to get this done because he knows how this is going to look in front of the American people, the Republican Party yet again, if they don't get this done and there's a possible shutdown."

"All of the chaotic rest of it, this is exactly what happened during the election, right?" said Cardona. "The House Republicans were focused on election deniers and a lot of them still won. There are still 147 Republicans that didn't certify the election in Congress. But the senators, they saw what happened when they actually gave voice to those non-commonsense Republicans, to the election deniers. They lost the Senate. And so I think this is what is going to be looked at in the Republican Party, as to who is going to win and there is going to be a big battle still, they have not learned their lesson in terms of the election. At least the House Republicans."

Watch the video below or at this link.

Maria Cardona says Kevin McCarthy is "selling out" to MAGAwww.youtube.com