Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) went on a self-pitying rant against House minority leader Kevin McCarthy with a supportive constituent during a virtual town hall on Thursday night.
McCarthy had said in a private discussion that the Florida Republican put other lawmakers in danger with his rhetoric after a mob of Donald Trump supporters broke into the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 insurrection, and caller identified as David from Fort Walton Beach called Gaetz to discuss the incident.
"I was furious, I was very angry," David said about the leaked McCarthy audio. "I see him more as a RINO."
Gaetz then brought others up to speed and put his own spin on the incident.
"For those of you who didn't hear what the leader of the Republicans in the House of Representatives said about me," Gaetz said, "he was on a call with Liz Cheney and Steve Scalise, the No. 2 person in our conference, and he said that because I was criticizing Liz Cheney for being anti-Trump, which, by the way, she now wears as a badge of honor, that I was putting people in jeopardy, physical jeopardy, just by offering words of criticism.
IN OTHER NEWS: Trump's 'acolytes' failing miserably as they try to oust GOP governors: report
"And then Steve Scalise, the whip of the House, said I might have done something illegal, and so I told those men that they owed to you, my constituents, that they owed to me and that they owed to the country either some basis to why words were dangerous and illegal or that they had no basis to say those things and that that does not reflect their thinking today."
"But I don't back down, I'm not afraid of these people," he added. "I think that we need a healthy dose of the truth in this place, and I'm tired of people lying about President Trump, I'm tired of them lying about me, and I'm not going to take it, and, frankly, you guys deserve to be represented in a way that is honest and reflective and thoughtful, and that's the work I try to do for you. I appreciate you joining me in outrage, David, you know, and I'm going to keep fighting for you."
Watch the video at this link or below.
Gaetz eruptswww.youtube.com
NOW WATCH: Kellyanne Conway unloads on student for accusing her of leaking explicit photo of her daughter
Kellyanne Conway unloads on student for accusing her of leaking explicit photo of her daughterwww.youtube.com
