Kari Lake: Resignation Letter of Former Ariz. GOP Chief 'Disgusting'

Republican Arizona Senate candidate Kari Lake said Wednesday night the resignation letter written by Jeff DeWit as head of the state Republican Party, was "disgusting" and that he did a "horrible job."

DeWit resigned earlier in the day following an audio recording in which he said "people back East" wanted him to convince her to end her campaign and drop out of politics for two years. DeWit claimed in his resignation letter that he was set up and that Lake selectively edited the audio.

"I didn't see an apology to the people of Arizona," Lake said Wednesday night in a livestream broadcast, her first comments since the audio was revealed Tuesday.

In the recording, which was made in March of last year, shortly before Lake spoke at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, D.C., Jeff DeWit is heard saying, "'There are very powerful people who want to keep you out."

He also told Lake, one of the staunchest defenders of the America First movement and former President Donald Trump, "So the ask I got today from back East was: 'Are there any companies out there or something that could just put her on the payroll to keep her out?'"

He also said, "Just say, is there a number at which ..."

"I can be bought? That's what it's about," Lake said.

"You can take a pause for a couple of years," DeWit said. "You can go right back to what you're doing."

In his resignation letter, DeWit said since their conversation "where I advised Lake to postpone her campaign" and run for Arizona's governor in two years — Lake lost a close race to Democrat Gov. Katie Hobbs in 2022 — Lake "has been on a mission to destroy me."

"It was a suggestion made in good faith, believing it could benefit both her future prospects and the party's overall strategy," DeWit wrote. "I said things I regret but I realize when hearing Lake's recording that I was set up. I believe she orchestrated this entire situation to have control over the state party."

He wrote Lake's team had advised him that if he didn't resign Wednesday, a more damaging recording would be released.

"He tried to act like the behavior you heard on that audio is normal communication among friends," Lake said. "It's disgusting, and I think he did a horrible job. He should have just apologized, resigned, and said he's going to work to do better."

Lake said Arizona GOP leaders are set to meet Saturday to talk about picking a new party leader.

"The corruption I saw in this individual, I don't think there's anybody who would be worse, to be honest," Lake said. "You could get a church mouse who might be a more ethical creature.

"We're going to need to have a strong Arizona Republican Party. I hope and I pray that when these amazing Republicans descend on Phoenix on Saturday, they come together and find a great, ethical, honest leader who is strong and smart and hardworking and can lead us through the next 10 months as we take our state back and our country back."