Tennessee Republican: McCarthy’s ‘condescending’ remark on faith sealed vote

Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) said a “condescending” comment from former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) about the lawmaker praying on the vote to remove McCarthy from office sealed his decision to support the ousting.

“He just said something that was very condescending to me — and it doesn’t really matter at this point — but at that point, I thought to myself that that pretty much sealed it right there,” Burchett told reporters at the Capitol after casting his vote.

Burchett backed McCarthy’s Speakership bid in all 15 votes back in January, but said their recent conversation tipped the scales, leaving him as one of the eight GOP members to buck their Speaker.

“I was going down two paths. I said one was keeping my friendship with Kevin McCarthy. And two was my conscience. And so my conscience won out, and it’s served me pretty well. And I said I would be praying about it. And I do, I ask God for wisdom,” Burchett said.

“Then the first thing out of his mouth on the phone was something very condescending. I thought, ‘Well, I’m gonna listen to him. I’m glad he’s calling. I’m sorry it’s right here at the last hour, but I’m gonna listen to him.’ And it was something condescending about my religious beliefs, and I just thought, I don’t need that. And that answered my question right there. The quality and the character there … maybe that’s the wrong thing to judge it on, but that’s what I did.”

Burchett, who is Christian, often speaks about his faith. 

“When he talked to me it could have been in a different tone, different attitude,” he said.  “And to me it just disappointed me.”

McCarthy at a press conference Tuesday said he wasn’t trying to offend Burchett.

“I said Tim, I read your quote, you said you’re gonna pray about it, I wanted to talk to you about it. And somehow he construes that — I’m a Christian, I’m not gonna offend somebody — I simply read his quote back, I thought there was still an opening and I wanted to talk to him about it,” McCarthy said.

Emily Brooks contributed. Updated at 9:34 p.m.