RICHMOND, Va.— House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said he called Newt Gingrich Tuesday to let him know “he was out of line” when he criticized the House Republican budget.
“I disagreed with him,” Cantor told POLITICO in an interview here Wednesday.
“And he heard from me that I’m hopeful that he can get on board now and agree that we’re the ones with a plan. [House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan’s] plan out there helps us show that we’re ready to lead. We’ve taken on every third rail in that plan, contrary to the president and the Democrats, which have still refused to put a plan on the table.”
The pushback from Cantor is the latest in a string of rebukes from Republicans of Gingrich’s comments on the GOP’s Medicare reform plans.
It furthers the comments Cantor made to a Chicago radio station Tuesday, when he said the former House speaker misspoke when he called the budget “right-wing social engineering.”
Cantor was back in his hometown Wednesday morning after a late flight from Chicago, where he spoke at the mercantile exchange. He held a forum with business leaders at Virginia Commonwealth University.
But Medicare is all the chatter among House lawmakers during the recess, even aside from Gingrich.
With the House on recess until May 23, talks among principals on the White House-led deficit commission are on hold. Cantor said he was going to talk to staff Wednesday afternoon about ongoing discussions.
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