McCarthy ally: The speaker's 'position is absolutely safe'

A Louisiana Republican who was the lead negotiator on the debt ceiling deal said House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is in no jeopardy of being ousted by his fellow Republicans.

Speaking Sunday on CBS' "Face the Nation," Rep. Garret Graves (R-La.) told host Margaret Brennan: "Speaker McCarthy’s position is absolutely safe."

The deal to raise the debt ceiling and make certain trims to the federal budget was approved by the Republican-led House on Wednesday and the Democratic-led Senate on Thursday. Potentially troubling for McCarthy, though, was that more Democrats than Republicans voted for the package that House Republicans had worked out with President Joe Biden and his team.

“I have no doubt his position is safe, and we’re going to keep marching forward, continuing to build upon the historic wins that he’s been able to achieve this year,” Graves said of McCarthy, calling him "one of the best strategists we've ever had."

Brennan pointed out that 71 House Republicans voted against the deal and noted that a number of them have continued to speak against the agreement. Graves said some of the opponents of the legislation were misinformed about the deal, even before it was finalized.

"Folks went out and began attempting to define a deal while still in negotiations," he said. "There wasn't even an agreement struck and their interpretation or definition of the agreement, as you can imagine, was flawed."

Biden signed the legislation into law Saturday, thanking McCarthy, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell “for their partnership.”

Brennan asked Graves if the two parties could build on the deal with more bipartisan legislation.

"The negotiations certainly were in good faith, but they also included a lot of candor," he replied. "We had some tense moments throughout, but I would love to tell you we could build upon this."