McCarthy sells ‘moron’ campaign T-shirts to protest mask mandates

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) is fundraising by selling T-shirts emblazoned with the word “moron” to protest mask mandates while swiping at Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).

In late July, Pelosi called McCarthy “such a moron” for opposing the return of a mask mandate in the House, which was put in place due a rise in infections from the delta variant of the coronavirus. 

“Nancy Pelosi JUST CALLED Kevin McCarthy a ‘moron’ for opposing the mask mandate. You’re a top patriot and HE NEEDS YOU to get this t-shirt to oppose HER & the Radical Socialist Left,” the Republican Party’s fundraising website WinRed reads.

The T-shirts define “moron” as: “A term coined by Nancy Pelosi referring to freedom-loving Americans who oppose Mask mandates.”

The Capitol physician reissued a mask mandate in late July for the House after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its guidelines in light of the delta variant surge.

After Pelosi called the GOP leader a moron for his opposition to wearing masks in the House, McCarthy accused the Speaker of being ignorant of “the science.”

“The Speaker of the House said that people who are fully vaccinated but don’t support wearing a mask are morons. She wanted to say that the House should follow the science. Madam Speaker, you don’t know the facts, nor the science, so let’s talk about it,” McCarthy said on the House floor.

When reached for comment, a representative of Pelosi’s office told The Hill, “A GOP 1st – truth in advertising.”

“Calling Americans who want their lives back ‘morons’ only shows how out of touch Pelosi continues to be. She’ll be fired in November 2022,” Michael Abboud, a spokesperson for McCarthy’s campaign said in a statement to The Hill. 

–Updated at 1:25 p.m.