Sen. Elizabeth Warren called Rep. Kevin McCarthy 'a liar and a traitor' over leaked Jan. 6 recording
- Sen. Elizabeth Warren called Rep. Kevin McCarthy a "liar and a traitor" during an interview Sunday.
- She also criticized the Republican party, saying they were aware that the insurrection was wrong.
Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren criticized House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy on Sunday, calling him a "liar and a traitor," after leaked audio revealed him saying he thought Trump should resign in the wake of the January 6 insurrection.
"Kevin McCarthy is a liar and a traitor," Warren said during an interview on CNN's "State of the Union" with Dana Bash. "This is outrageous and that is really the illness that pervades the Republican leadership right now, that they say one thing to the American public and something else in private."
Warren continued by calling on Republicans to shift their priorities, saying they understood the gravity of the insurrection and spent time trying to overturn election results rather than "build an economy, in order to make this country work better."
"Shame on Kevin McCarthy," Warren said.
Warren's comments fall in line with other Democrats' criticism of McCarthy's actions.
McCarthy has faced scrutiny in recent days following the release of audio recordings in which he said he was considering asking former President Donald Trump to resign after the Capitol attack.
"I've had it with this guy," McCarthy said of Trump over the phone, according to an audio recording from January 10, 2021. "What he did is unacceptable. Nobody can defend that, and nobody should defend it."
McCarthy denied an initial report about his comments, but The New York Times later released the recording on MSNBC.
As for Trump, the former president has since shown public support for McCarthy.
"I think it's all a big compliment, frankly. They realized they were wrong and supported me," Trump told The Wall Street Journal on Friday.
Representatives for Warren and McCarthy did not immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment.