Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) apologized for hurling an expletive at a GOP colleague after growing frustrated during a House committee hearing Tuesday.
McCaul told Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) to “go f—” himself after the California Republican continued to speak after McCaul gaveled him down during a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing Tuesday. McCaul, the chair of the committee, apologized for his comments in a statement.
“It was a long day, and I lost my temper. That is uncharacteristic of me and I apologize to Mr Issa, who I consider a friend,” McCaul said in a statement about the remarks.
A committee aide told The Hill that McCaul was frustrated that Issa continued to speak over his time limit, noting that the chair held every member to five minutes and wanted to be fair to the committee. The aide added that McCaul also wanted to get to the classified briefing on the matter.
Issa responded to McCaul’s remarks with a post on social media.
“Hey @RepMcCaul — I’ve been called worse … and by people I don’t like!” Issa wrote.
The hearing included testimonies from Gen. Mark Milley, former chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, former head of U.S. Central Command, about the U.S.’s chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. The retired generals told the committee about what errors during 20 years of war led to the withdrawal and conceded that there were still some mistakes made by the Biden administration.
McCaul launched his investigation into the Afghanistan withdrawal in January 2023 and vowed at the hearing to hold those involved accountable.
“I believe that accountability ensures mistakes of the past are not repeated,” he said. “I launched this investigation to make sure that the mistakes made in Afghanistan never ever happen again.”