MSNBC host Stephanie Ruhle snapped at Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) to “get real” as the lawmaker attempted to pontificate about lofty political ideals she claimed were behind her refusal to back Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) as House speaker.
Ruhle alerted her audience at the start about the unsual Wednesday night interview with Boebert on MSNBC.
“I want you to know that we are not giving her a free pass to talk about conspiracy theories, we’re not giving her a free pass to talk about the lies that she has spread at other times,” Ruhle explained. Instead, she added, the interview would be an attempt to try to “understand what is keeping Congress from starting the work of the American people. That’s why we talked to her tonight.”
Ruhle then repeatedly pressed Boebert on why she and other extremists were blocking McCarthy’s bid for the speakership. He failed Thursday to win a record 11th vote to be named speaker as extremist Republicans and their allies blocked his success.
“We want to fundamentally change the way Washington, D.C., operates,” said Boebert, who blamed McCarthy for the “red wave” that never materialized when the Republicans failed to run away with November’s midterm elections.
“Look, Kevin McCarthy has been in leadership for 14 years. What does he have to show for that?” Boebert asked, without detailing what she thought he should have been doing.
“We aren’t just electing somebody who can fund-raise and just rubber-stamp him into office,” she added. “That’s not what I was elected to do …. This is us .... actually using our votes, and I believe our Founding Fathers intended it to be this way.”
Ruhle responded: “OK, well, our Founding Fathers aren’t here. So let’s get real and let’s get practical.”
Ruhle pointed out that “most Republicans are with” McCarthy and that the Republican opposition’s latest candidate, Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), garnered only 20 votes. She asked how someone like that could be expected to “unify” Republicans, which Boebert claimed was a goal.
Ruhle also pointed out that House Republicans are dead in the water until a speaker is chosen. Voters are saying, “Hold on a second, I voted you in to get something done,” said Ruhle. “How long are you willing to wait?”
Boebert responded: “As some of my colleagues have said, we could be here until the cherry blossoms bloom.”
Check out the interview here: