McCarthy-Aligned PAC Hauls in Cash For Pro-Impeachment House Republicans

Three of those representatives face Trump-endorsed primary challengers.

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House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s joint fundraising PAC, Take Back the House 2022, raised a combined $823,000 last year for five of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach former President Donald Trump. The fundraising pits the Republican leader of the lower chamber against the former president and the candidates he has endorsed in three of those primaries ahead of the November midterms. 

The House Republicans who voted for impeachment in 2021 have presented a dilemma for House GOP leaders who want to hold incumbent seats in swing districts without provoking the ire of the former president, whose main goal since January 2021 has been to oust members of the party he deems insufficiently loyal – to Trump. 

“I guess the question is, are we going to start playing in primaries? … That’s [McCarthy’s] business, not mine,” GOP Rep. Andy Biggs told The Dispatch Tuesday. As former chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, Biggs spearheaded two failed attempts last year to remove pro-impeachment GOP Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger for their decision to serve as the only two Republican members of the House Select Committee investigating January 6. 

The spending makes clear that McCarthy believes that a vote to impeach Trump shouldn’t necessarily cost a House GOP member fundraising support from party leaders, at least when it comes to incumbents who are running for reelection in competitive districts. Per FEC filings updated Monday, last year Take Back the House 2022 raised $178,293.13 for David Valadao of California, $159,856.96 for Peter Meijer of Michigan, $160,600.23 for Jaime Herrera Beutler of Washington, and $163,713.72 for Fred Upton of Michigan. Take Back the House 2022 also gave $160,600.26 last year to New York GOP Rep. John Katko, who announced this month he will not seek reelection.

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  1. Avatar photo
    Ben Connelly

    Good article. Man I hope Meijer and Cheney win.

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    Jeff Greene

    As a libertarian conservative, I hate that Cheney is such a neo-con, big government, interventionist Republican, but I really want to send her a check so she can continue to flip the bird to the guy who caused me to re-register from Republican to No-Party-Preference. Maybe I'll just send twice as much to Meijer until I know she is in actual danger.

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  3. Boatbody

    The candidates who represent only the fringe left Democrats and the fringe right Republicans should be run out of office -- or denied office by the voters -- so that strength and moderation can once again prevail in this county. As one writer put it, "its not the candidates who are the problem -- its the voters who elect 'em."

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    1. Avatar photo
      Bill Nelson

      “… denied office by the voters…”
      This is how it works. And try as one might, voters often won’t do as you tell them.

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    Paul Britton

    A good report. I think a lot of us are very interested in how the campaigns of these truth-telling people are going.

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    1. Avatar photo
      Bill Nelson

      “… campaigns of these truth-telling people…”
      Is there a candidate who claims not to be a truth teller? (I hate that term).

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      1. Avatar photo
        Paul Britton

        I just meant that Kenzinger, Cheney, and the few others are speaking the truth about the election "steal" and most of the rest of the Republicans won't, even though they know there was no steal.

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  5. Avatar photo
    Patrick

    Interesting stuff, thanks. Practical politics wins out over irrational support of Trump. I expect that trend to continue apace.

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  6. Avatar photo
    Mitch

    Andy Biggs has really fallen a long way since the American Pie movies...

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    Pat Riot

    He's using the Virginia playbook, which is to pretend that it's GOP 1998 in purple districts and go full-hog Trump in the other 90%.

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      rlritt

      I think that worked for Younger in VA

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  8. Avatar photo
    I Was a Crooked Lawyer

    Cheney will not face Hageman in November. Wyoming primary is August 16. How dissident GOP incumbents fare in primaries is more important to the nation long term than party control of Congress in November IMHO.

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    1. Avatar photo
      Bill Nelson

      Neither is all that important in the grand scheme of things. And Trump is old and it is a personality cult, not an ideology so it will die out within 5 years. And Trump is not the hardest worker.

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      1. Avatar photo
        rlritt

        I wish I could believe that. A coworker went to Oklahoma to visit her sister whose husband is a Pastor in a small town. She said there tons of Trump signs in that town and the town where her parents live. Also saw Ivanka for President signs. She said these good people worship Trump. They want him to be dictator for life . And her cousin was saying he is a blessed by God and when he takes over the country, it no longer be United States, and he'll stay President and his idiot children will take over after him. She also said her relatives in Texas say the same thing. Is this real? Does anyone know people like this? It's truly frightening.

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          Bill Nelson

          “ Is this real?“
          No.

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          1. Tony Rice

            Bill. It is real. It makes my head spin, but it is real. I grew up in a cotton mill town of 500, about an hour from Atlanta. I've spent most of my life in Wisconsin, Seattle, and MO though. Have you not seen the GOP polls regarding Trump? Those numbers are from all over, but rural areas are true believers at disturbing levels.

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            rlritt

            Thanks. I hope so.

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      2. Avatar photo
        Pat Riot

        But he and his family will go to (or stay in) prison if he doesn't win. He'll run or die trying. Remember, he doesn't even need to win majorities in relevant states this time to obtain victory.

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          rlritt

          I don't know why he isn't in prison now.

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      Audrey Fahlberg vertical-nib Author

      Typo! Thanks for flagging

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  9. Avatar photo
    Steve Gordon

    McCarthy is doing the practical thing here. Glad he's supporting JHB. I've met Joe Kent, and let's just say, he wouldn't be my choice to represent WA in Congress. In an interview on local talk radio, he stated that he most admires Matt Gaetz and would style himself in that model if elected. 'Nuff said.

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      rlritt

      OMG! What an idiot. Does he not know that he "dates" teenage girls and is a total sleeze?

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    2. Craig Berry

      You mean he's looking to get indicted on a sex-trafficking/prostitution rap? Or that he aspires to look like the love child of Count Chocula and Mel Kiper? Look, that's not the way I'd roll but whatever makes the man happy...

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        rlritt

        Ha ha!

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        Steve Gordon

        Ha, ha, ha...that's great. Definitely something to aspire to!

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  10. Avatar photo
    Linda Beggs

    I so want the Trump-endorsed primary challengers to lose 'bigly.'

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