Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), with an assist from the National Republican Congressional Committee, just savagely mocked a fellow Californian and Democratic opponent with a Halloween-themed prank.
The NRCC delivered to Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA), the chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, a U.S. mail carrier Halloween costume on Tuesday, according to the Washington Examiner.
That keeps with the nickname of "Post Office Pete" that McCarthy had mockingly bestowed upon Aguilar following a spat on the House floor during the extended process to nominate and confirm a replacement for McCarthy in his prior role as House Speaker.
The Hill reported on Oct. 20 that Rep. McCarthy, while delivering a speech on the House floor to nominate Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) as the next Speaker, had described the conservative firebrand Ohio congressman as an "effective legislator," which was met by laughs and boos from House Democrats.
The Democratic Caucus countered, through Chairman Aguilar, that no bills written by Jordan had ever been passed during his 16-year career in the House, but McCarthy rebutted that by pointing out that only one bill written by Aguilar, a resolution establishing a post office in California, had ever been passed by Congress.
"Apparently that’s good enough for caucus chair," the former Speaker quipped about his partisan rival, who he went on to later deride Aguilar with the new nickname in response to a critical social media thread about McCarthy's failure to effectively legislate while "groveling" for votes from "extreme members" of the GOP conference.
"Thanks for your concern, Post Office Pete," McCarthy replied with a mailbox emoji to Aguilar's tweets.
Fast-forward nearly two weeks after that back-and-forth on the House floor and social media to the NRCC's delivery of a U.S. mail carrier Halloween outfit to Rep. Aguilar's office at the Capitol -- a delivery that the California Democrat then complained about online.
"The NRCC just wasted donor money to send me a Halloween costume. No wonder the @dccc and Democrats are outraising House Republicans," he tweeted.
Aguilar then added of Republicans and newly elected House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), "But don’t let them disguise the fact that they just elevated the most extreme Speaker in American history who wants ban abortion nationwide."
In response, the NRCC shared Aguilar's post and said in reply, "Maybe the reason you’re so ineffective is you’d rather whine about us online than legislate … Post Office Pete."
Maybe the reason you’re so ineffective is you’d rather whine about us online than legislate…
Post Office Pete. https://t.co/b9RGQngjip https://t.co/f0ppaaqZII
— NRCC (@NRCC) November 1, 2023
The NRCC's retweet of Rep. Aguilar's complaining post, in addition to the mocking nickname, also included a link to the Washington Examiner's article, to which a formal statement had been provided about the Halloween-themed prank.
NRCC national press secretary Will Reinert told the outlet, "It may be a Halloween costume, but the least effective legislator in House Democratic leadership history, Post Office Pete Aguilar, can wear this uniform year-round."
