House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy: 'We need to unite behind one leader and get to work'

Kevin McCarthy speaks to the press after dropping out of the race for House Speaker. — (Image credit: MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images)

It's still a bit of a mystery what happened behind closed doors on Thursday when House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) unexpectedly decided to drop out of the race for speaker of the House. Though details are scarce, McCarthy elaborated in a tweet:

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.