House Republican Tim Burchett Alleges Kevin McCarthy Delivered a Sneak Attack to His Kidneys, Labels Former House Speaker a Coward with Zero Courage | Vanity Fair

Written by Bess Levin

Overall, the GOP's recent House Speaker election debacle can be summarized as a chaotic and unmanageable mess. Another reflection of this unruly state was an incident that occurred between two GOP congressmen, which purportedly involved a surprise hit, a pursuit, and accusations of cowardice.

In an astonishing turn of events, Representative Tim Burchett, one of the eight Republicans who voted against Kevin McCarthy, informed CNN reporter Manu Raju that McCarthy had delivered a "sucker" punch to his back. This happened while Burchett was being interviewed by NPR.

The Tennessee congressman recounted, "During my interview with Claudia from NPR, I was unexpectedly elbowed in the back. When I turned around, I found Kevin. I was confused, wondering, ‘What just occurred?’ I then began to chase after him. He hides behind his massive wealth and security detail when confronted, like a child throwing a stone and hiding behind his mother. However, this is not how we solve issues in East Tennessee. We confront and discuss our issues."

Asked about his encounter with McCarthy after the chase, Burchett said, "He pretended not to know who I was or why I was upset. This behavior seems to be a trend in his brief term as Speaker…. He dodged me and wouldn't confront me…. You wouldn't expect a man who was once only three steps away from the White House to act in this cowardly manner."

Claudia Grisales, the journalist who was interviewing Burchett at the time of the incident, shared her perspective of what occurred on X, the platform previously known as Twitter. She confirmed that McCarthy indeed shoved Burchett, and Burchett responded by yelling at McCarthy, "What was that for, Kevin!? Hey Kevin, do you even have any guts!?"

According to Grisales, Burchett further addressed McCarthy saying, "You lack courage… What a cowardly act, you're just a sad little man."

Contributions by Mark Chiusano, Sloane Crosley, and Julie Miller

In response to McCarthy's claim that their encounter was accidental, Burchett refuted, "Out of 435 congressmen, I was one of the eight who voted against him. There was enough room in that corridor for four people to walk side by side. He chose to behave the way he did." McCarthy later scoffed at the accusation, saying, "If I had hit him in the kidneys, he'd be on the floor…. let's be realistic."

Although Burchett has stated that he does not intend to lodge a House Ethics complaint against McCarthy, Matt Gaetz, who spearheaded the campaign to remove the former Speaker, has announced that he will. (McCarthy has claimed that Gaetz's attempt to unseat him was a form of punishment for McCarthy's reopening of an investigation concerning allegations of sexual misconduct, which Gaetz denies.)