Trump: They're Giving Me Credit for McCarthy Dropping Out

GOP presidential front-runner says he is getting credit for House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy's decision to drop out of the race for House speaker. 

Trump made the announcement of McCarthy's withdrawal to a crowd of supporters in Las Vegas on Thursday.

"They are giving me a lot of credit for that because I said you really need somebody very, very tough and very smart," Trump said. "Smart goes with tough. I know tough people, they are not smart, that's the worst. … You gotta be smart. … We need the whole package."

Trump did no specify who had given him credit for taking down McCarthy, but he also mentioned the need for both smarts and toughness in a tweet about McCarthy leaving.

Great, Kevin McCarthy drops out of SPEAKER race. We need a really smart and really tough person to take over this very important job!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 8, 2015

"I just hope now that they find somebody that's going to have those qualities where we can negotiate," Trump told the Vegas crowd. "Because if we don't, we're going to be in very big trouble."

Related Stories:

• Rep. Issa: McCarthy to Stay on as House Majority Leader
• Chaffetz: McCarthy Dropping Out Creates Opening for Me