Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) punched back at former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, calling him a “loser,” though she conceded she will need help to defeat one of her GOP primary opponents, whom she called McCarthy’s “puppet.”
Mace, one of the eight Republicans who joined Democrats to oust McCarthy from the speakership in October, was a thorn in McCarthy’s side until he left the House at the end of last year. But even with McCarthy absent from the lower chamber, their bad blood has continued. McCarthy told reporters on Capitol Hill last week Mace needed to get help and needed to straighten out her life.
“I hope Nancy gets the help she needs. I really do,” McCarthy told reporters on Wednesday. “I just hope she gets the help to straighten out her life. I mean, she’s got a lot of challenges. No one will stay working for her. You can’t have somebody who just flips and flops based upon what TV station she gets put on. You want someone who’s willing to work, and so I hope she gets that kind of help.”
Mace responded with a post on X on Monday, asking for donations to her congressional campaign amid the attacks from McCarthy.
Kevin McCarthy just can’t help himself as I am living rent free in his head. He got one thing right, however; I do need help. I need your help to fight back against the corrupt DC establishment and their handpicked puppet. Chip in today >>https://t.co/yIo0S2PO55 pic.twitter.com/Q9FLlHLEgV
— Nancy Mace (@NancyMace) February 19, 2024
“Guess what? I heard the former speaker — disgraced former speaker — was talking a lot of smack this week and said that I need help. Well, guess what? I do need help,” Mace said in the video before asking for donations.
“He put our majority at risk. He lied to the American people. He couldn’t even hold his speakership because he’s a loser. So yeah, Kevin, I need help. I need help to raise money so I can hit back at you and your hand-picked opponent, who’s now your puppet, running in South Carolina against me,” she added.
Mace, a controversial member of the House GOP conference, said one of her reasons for ousting McCarthy was his inaction on women’s issues, which differed from the reasons of her seven GOP colleagues. The successful motion to vacate McCarthy paralyzed the House of Representatives for more than three weeks, as Republicans failed to agree on a new speaker until they finally elected Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA).
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The South Carolina Republican has garnered several primary opponents, including one of her former chiefs of staff, Dan Hanlon. Mace has accused another one of her GOP primary opponents, Catherine Templeton, of being a “puppet in Kevin McCarthy’s bitter revenge operation.”
The Republican primary for South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District is scheduled for June 11.
