Leaked audio: Kevin McCarthy says Trump accepted 'some responsibility' for Jan. 6

Yet another piece of leaked audio of ​​House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) has emerged.

CNN on Friday aired audio in which McCarthy can be heard telling Republican lawmakers in January of 2021 that former President Donald Trump told him he bears some responsibility for the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. The audio was obtained by New York Times reporters Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns for their book This Will Not Pass: Trump, Biden and the Battle for America's Future.

"I asked [Trump] personally today, does he hold responsibility for what happened?" McCarthy said. "Does he feel bad about what happened? And he told me he does have some responsibility for what happened."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

McCarthy also told members that Trump "bears responsibility for his words and actions" and must acknowledge this. That same month, McCarthy publicly said Trump "bears responsibility" for the riot, though he still argued against impeaching him.

A previous piece of leaked audio on Thursday night revealed McCarthy told House GOP colleagues he planned to urge Trump to resign, despite a spokesperson for McCarthy previously claiming this was never said. According to The Washington Post, McCarthy and Trump spoke over the phone Thursday night, and the former president was "not upset" about the leaked remarks.

When asked at a news conference earlier this year whether he told Republicans that Trump agreed he bears responsibility for Jan. 6, McCarthy said, "I'm not sure what call you're talking about."