Photo: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images
Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Sunday called House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy "a liar and a traitor" when asked about audio of the congressman saying he planned to urge President Trump to resign over the Jan. 6 riot.
Driving the news: "That is really the illness that pervades the Republican leadership right now," the Massachusetts Democrat told CNN's Dana Bash, "they say one thing to the American public and something else in private."
- The tape is a recording of a call involving McCarthy and other members of his leadership team, including Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) and House Republican Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.).
- Cheney asks McCarthy if he thinks Trump might resign, to which he responds: "[T]he only discussion I would have with him is that I think this [impeachment resolution] will pass, and it would be my recommendation you should resign. I mean, that would be my take. But I don't think he would take it."
- McCarthy denied the account hours before the New York Times reporters — who are authors of a new book, "This Will Not Pass," — released the audio.
What she's saying: "They understand that it is wrong what happened — an attempt to overthrow our government," Warren said on CNN's "State of the Union." "The Republicans instead want to continue to try to figure out how to make [the] 2020 election different instead of spending their energy on how it is that we go forward in order to build an economy, in order to make this country work better for the people who sent us to Washington."
- "Shame on Kevin McCarthy," she added.
Go deeper: Tape shows McCarthy said he would urge Trump to resign