A small group of hardline MAGA Republicans drove former House speaker Kevin McCarthy out of office, but their most vulnerable members really miss the money he would have raised for their re-election campaigns.
McCarthy left Congress after losing his leadership position, and his successor Mike Johnson simply doesn't have the knack for raking in campaign cash, especially for incumbents locked in tough fights to keep their seats, reported The Daily Beast.
“McCarthy was a money machine,” said GOP donor Eric Levinet. “He just had a great talent for it.”
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The California Republican outraised Johnson for at-risk Republicans many times over, which could be catastrophic for GOP hopes for retaining control of the House later this year.
“When there is not a Republican president in office, the No. 1 political fundraising draw is the Speaker of the House,” said GOP strategist Ken Spain.
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For example, McCarthy and his associated committees directed an average of $145,000 per quarter last year during his time as speaker to freshman Rep. Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ), compared to an average of $14,000 in quarterly transfers from Johnson's operation, and McCarthy steered an average of $193,000 per quarter last year to Rep. Marc Molinaro (R-NY), while Johnson has raised about $28,000 per quarter for the freshman lawmaker.
“I think the other thing is people were really, really angry — I know I was — when the speaker was vacated and he was removed,” Levine said. “So donors were going to take it out naturally on whoever was next.”
McCarthy spent more than a decade and a half building his House fundraising operation after establishing donor relationships as minority leader in the California legislature, which his critics used to portray him as a corporate hack, while Johnson was first elected to Congress in 2016 and was seen as a back-bencher until his surprise elevation to speaker.
“Since October, Speaker Johnson has built a team from the ground up, traveled to 25 states, and contributed millions directly to Republican campaign accounts across the country,” Johnson’s campaign spokesman said in a statement. “His most recent quarter with over $20 million raised demonstrates the Speaker’s success and commitment to growing the majority."
Although he might never match McCarthy's skills, donors have started to warm to Johnson after getting a foreign aid bill passed over objections from the GOP's right-wing flank and winning the backing of Democrats against a leadership challenge by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA).
“I think if he continues to govern and get things accomplished, I think that’ll give a lot of people a lot of comfort,” Levine said. “I think if he comes out in support of mainstream Republicans and if he speaks out against the Marjorie Taylor Greenes, Matt Gaetzes, and Bob Goods of the world, I think he would do himself a lot of good. In the group that I move in … there is unanimity that we hate these people, that we wish they would go away, and he would do himself a service, at least in my group, if he continues to stand up to them.”
