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Former President Donald Trump has celebrated newly elected Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy's victory while acknowledging that the 15-ballot race could be seen as "crazy."
Trump took to his Truth Social platform early on Saturday and praised McCarthy's win after the Republican finally succeeded on the 15th vote after four days of opposition from a minority within his own party.
"The 'Speaker' selection process, as crazy as it may seem, has made it all much bigger and more important than if done the more conventional way. Congratulations to Kevin McCarthy and our GREAT Republican Party!" the former president wrote.
Speaker McCarthy also had kind words for Trump and thanked him for his support following the final ballot. He spoke to reporters at around 2 a.m. ET, after the late night vote.
"But I do want to especially thank President Trump," McCarthy said. "I don't think you should doubt–anybody should doubt his influence. He was with me from the beginning... And he was all in. He would call me and he would call others."
"And he really was – I was just talking to him tonight – helping get those final votes," McCarthy went on. "And what he's really saying really for the party and the country, that we have to come together. We have to focus on the economy. We've got to focus, make our border secure. We've got to do so much work to do, and he was a great influence to make that all happen. So, thank you, President Trump."
Trump had publicly backed McCarthy, despite opposition from some Republicans in Congress who are seen as close allies of the former president, including Representatives Matt Gaetz and Lauren Boebert.
Boebert had specifically said that Trump "needs to tell Kevin McCarthy that, sir, you do not have the votes, and it's time to withdraw," while Gaetz said he would not support McCarthy despite Trump's backing.
"I love President Trump. I defended him a great deal in Congress, but HR wasn't always his strong suit," Gaetz told Fox News' Laura Ingraham on Thursday.
However, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, another close ally of the former president, was consistent in her support for McCarthy, and on Wednesday she said she was "furious" with her colleagues in the Freedom Caucus who were still opposed to his election as speaker.
Trump formally declared his intention to run for president again in 2024, shortly after the November midterm elections, becoming the first major party candidate to make his campaign official.
McCarthy's comments about Trump on Saturday morning could be seen as a good sign for the former president's chances within his own party.
Newsweek has asked Speaker McCarthy's office for comment.
Update 01/07/2023 at 5:25 a.m. ET; This article was updated with comments from several Representatives.
About the writer
Darragh Roche is a U.S. News Reporter based in Limerick, Ireland. His focus is reporting on U.S. politics. He has ... Read more