And he directs his anger at the leading Republican in the House of Representatives: California lawmaker Kevin McCarthy. “This committee was a bad decision not to have representation on this committee,” Trump recently told Conservative radio presenter Wayne Allyn Root. “It was a very, very stupid decision because they try to pretend to be legal and only when you get into the internal affairs do you say, ‘What kind of thing is that?’ “It’s just a one-sided witch hunt.” For McCarthy’s decision, at least, he is 100% right. You will remember – and if not, I will tell you – that McCarthy originally selected five Republican MPs to serve on the House Electoral Selection Committee investigating Jan. 6, 2021. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi rejected two of them – Jim Jordan of Ohio and Jim Banks of Indiana – pointing out that the duo had voted against the 2020 Electoral College count. At this point, McCarthy took his ball and went home. “Unless President Pelosi changes course and sits down all five Republican candidates, the Republicans will not participate in their sham process and will continue our investigation into the facts,” he said at the time. This move may have helped McCarthy gain ground in the short term with the Trump base. But he also ensured that Republican House leaders would have no eyes on the committee, meaning they would play defense, politically speaking, at every turn. There are two Republicans on the committee, you will note. But Republicans in the House of Representatives ousted Liz Cheney from her leadership position over her criticism of Trump, and Adam Kinzinger is stepping down and making clear his contempt for Republican leaders. The simple fact is that McCarthy’s decision not to have any members loyal to him on the committee ensured a) the pro-Trump view would not be represented in any way and b) the Republicans would fight the committee with one hand tied behind the their backs. The point: McCarthy is not only fighting for a majority in Parliament this fall. He also struggles to be Trump’s choice as the next speaker. How he played on the January 6 panel does not help his wider case.