Kevin McCarthy said Matt Gaetz' post-Capitol riot comments were 'putting people in jeopardy'

According to The New York Times, House GOP leaders were concerned that some hard-line Republicans were putting other lawmakers in danger by making offensive and inflammatory comments.

According to The Times, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy called out Gaetz in a January 10, 2021, phone call for his post-riot television appearances in which he attacked other Republicans.

Liz Cheney, a member of the leadership team who was already facing increased public attacks due to her criticism of Trump, was one of the targets of Gaetz.

According to audio of the phone call obtained by The Times, McCarthy said that Gaetz was putting people in danger. We knew what people would do in the Capitol, so we prepared them with rope and everything else.

McCarthy said he would call Gaetz and tell him to stop attacking his colleagues.

Gaetz comments could present a legal problem according to Steve Scalise.

The Louisiana Republican said that it was potentially illegal what he was doing.

McCarthy asked his fellow Republican leaders to watch over Gaetz and other far-right members and to alert him if they saw any potentially harmful comments.

—Acyn (@Acyn) April 26, 2022

The day after the phone call, McCarthy asked members of his party to respect each other and not to incite them, according to The Times.

McCarthy intended to call Gaetz and reprimanded him, but it wasn't immediately clear if he did.

Representatives for McCarthy, Gaetz, and Scalise didn't respond to Insider's request for comment.

Gaetz addressed The Times reporting, saying that McCarthy and Scalise were weak men.

While I was protecting President Trump from impeachment, they were protecting Liz Cheney from criticism, he wrote.

Gaetz said that you don't have to be a lobbyist with a $5,000 check to know what McCarthy and Scalise think.

—Rep. Matt Gaetz (@RepMattGaetz) April 26, 2022

The bombshell recording was obtained by New York Times reporters Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns.

McCarthy came under fire last week for downplaying comments he made during a phone call. The audio recording was released after McCarthy lied about telling House GOP members that he planned to urge Trump to resign.

McCarthy said he never told Trump to resign after The Times published the audio. Gaetz lambasted the Republican leader last week, saying McCarthy should have trusted his instincts.

The Times reported that additional Republican lawmakers were named during the January 10 GOP leadership call.