Kinzinger doubtful McCarthy will 'last very long' if elected House speaker

Illinois Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger on Sunday criticized House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, claiming that the California GOP leader will not last long if he is elected to House speaker.

When asked on CNN's "State of the Union" about what type of speaker McCarthy will be, Kinzinger said, "if you had asked me five years ago, I would have said a pretty good one." Kinzinger has since gone against his party on numerous occasions, such as by joining the Jan. 6 Committee to investigate the Capitol riot, against McCarthy's wishes. 

Kinzinger said McCarthy "has cut so many deals with bad people to get to this position that I think he's not going to be a leader at all."

McCarthy won the Republican leadership nomination for House speaker last week by a vote of 188-31. 

"I think he will be completely hostage to kind of the extreme wings of the Republican Party. And I, frankly, don't think he's going to last very long," said Kinzinger, who chose not to run for reelection this fall.