The two leaders held the call after the audio recording was circulated in US media in response to recent claims by McCarthy that he did not push for Trump’s resignation following the breach of the Capitol by individuals protesting the certification of the 2020 presidential election in favor of Joe Biden, the report said, citing two people familiar with the conversation.
Trump was reportedly not upset with McCarthy and expressed gladness that he did not follow through with urging for his resignation, which Trump viewed as a sign of McCarthy’s continued hold over the Republican Party as one of its leaders, the report said.
However, House Republicans are still waiting on a clear signal from Trump as to whether they should continue to back McCarthy as their leader in the chamber – and potential Speaker of the House should Republicans regain a majority of seats in the next election – without backing from the still-influential former president, the report said.
"If Trump comes out and says [McCarthy] lost my faith and can’t be speaker, that is bold. That will move people," one Republican congressional aide said in the report on the condition of anonymity.
Trump merely complaining about McCarthy is unlikely to threaten his leadership position, the aide added, pointing to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s continued leadership despite frequent complaints about the lawmaker from Trump.
The call audio of McCarthy and fellow Republican lawmaker Liz Cheney was released after McCarthy denied a report that he and McConnell privately pledged to remove Trump from US politics after the events at the Capitol on January 6. In the recording, McCarthy can be heard telling Cheney that "it would be my recommendation [Trump] should resign."