Buchanan confronted McCarthy after losing chairmanship, said ‘you f***ed me’: Report
Jack Birle
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Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL) was reportedly angry after losing the chairmanship of the House Ways and Means Committee to Rep. Jason Smith (R-MO).
Buchanan reportedly confronted House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) when he found out he did not get the committee chairmanship and was so fierce in his remarks toward the speaker that McCarthy’s security detail got involved, per a report from Puck News.
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“You f***ed me, I know it was you, you whipped against me,” Buchanan allegedly told McCarthy.
McCarthy’s staff denied security had to get involved in the tense exchange between the two, according to the outlet.
Reps. Vern Buchanan, Adrian Smith (R-NE), and Jason Smith were in a three-way battle for the chairmanship on the committee, with Buchanan touting his seniority on the committee. Smith, who was fifth in line for the chair, ultimately won the seat.
Buchanan was congratulatory in the aftermath of the battle for the Ways and Means chair, saying the committee has a “big agenda.”
“I want to congratulate Jason and wish him well,” Buchanan said in a statement last week. “We have a big agenda to fulfill, and I look forward to working with him and the committee on shared priorities.”
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Buchanan, in the same statement, lamented how it was a loss for the state of Florida, which “hasn’t had a committee chairman in five years despite being the fastest growing state with the second largest Republican delegation in the House.”
The Washington Examiner reached out to Buchanan and McCarthy for comment.