Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) is taking heat for a label he applied to some of his colleagues who are preventing House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) from becoming speaker.
Speaking to conservative commentator Guy Benson on Wednesday, Crenshaw said, “Whether it’s Boehner, or Paul Ryan, or McCarthy, Scalise would just be next, and we all know it. We just can’t allow that to happen.”
“That’s why those of us are saying like look, you pushed us into this corner, so now we’re saying we won’t vote for anyone but McCarthy. That’s why we’re saying it because we cannot let the terrorists win,” he added.
Fox News’ Tucker Carlson blasted Crenshaw’s comments, as he said, “You may like Kevin McCarthy, or not. Both are allowed. But no matter how you feel, you have to acknowledge, if you’re being honest, that people who don’t like Kevin McCarthy have a reason for that. They have real concerns, real issues.”
“But you’ll notice that Dan Crenshaw didn’t address any of those — none of them. Instead, he impugned their motive, their character, their intelligence, their moral standing. They’re narcissists. In fact, and we’re quoting, they’re ‘enemies’ now,” he added.
Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), one of McCarthy’s opponents, tweeted, “Crenshaw has now convinced himself that those who do not support McCarthy are ‘terrorists.'”
Check out some of the reactions below:
https://twitter.com/KingsleyCortes/status/1610784161773535233
Crenshaw later reacted to the outrage in a tweet, “Unclutch your pearls. It’s a figure of speech. You can’t insult, slander, and hold everyone hostage with no way out – and not expect me to punch back.”
“Grow thicker skin,” he added.
The term “terrorist” can be a loaded word. But, Crenshaw’s point is, the overwhelming majority of House Republicans are being denied their pick for speaker by a group, made up of 10% of the conference, which is dug in and cannot vocalize what or who could definitively end the standoff.
Crenshaw expressed concerns the 20 Republicans would not be satisfied even if McCarthy withdrew his name and would continue to reject other candidates.
It must be frustrating to be heading into the third day of voting for a speaker with no clear endpoint. Meanwhile, the House is unable to take care of any business. It is stuck in a doom loop of voting for the foreseeable future.
Even if you think gridlock and not passing spending bills and other legislation is good, the lack of a speaker means the House cannot even perform its oversight function. So investigations in the withdrawal from Afghanistan, COVID-19, allegations government officials worked with Twitter to manipulate the 2020 election, and Hunter Biden cannot move forward.
And while the House is frozen, the clock is counting down to the next election when Democrats could win control of the House again by picking up just a handful of seats.
So were his comments a little inflammatory? Sure. But the response has also been blown out of proportion.