Rep. Lauren Boebert said Kyle Rittenhouse has “bigger intentions” than becoming a congressional intern following offers by multiple GOP representatives in the aftermath of the Kenosha murder trial.
Speaking to right-wing commentator Sebastian Gorka on his “America First” podcast, Boebert discussed meeting 18-year-old Rittenhouse at AmericaFest, a conference by conservative organization Turning Point USA. Rittenhouse was an acclaimed speaker at the event.
“Kyle was such a sweetheart,” Boebert said.
“And Dr. Gorka, I have to tell you, the very first thing that he said was he saw our interview together talking about him interning in my office and how — remember I brought up that it was unfair, Madison Cawthorn wanted to challenge me to an arm wrestling contest over Mr. Rittenhouse, and I said, ‘I’m not going up against those muscles, I will challenge you to a sprint.’”
“And Kyle mentioned that, and he just loved it,” the congresswoman said.
Boebert was referring to a previous Newsmax interview with Gorka, in which she stated Rep. Madison Cawthorn, her colleague from North Carolina, suggested they arm wrestle for Rittenhouse’s internship.
The congresswoman joked about challenging him to a sprint instead to “make this fair.” Cawthorn is a wheelchair user after being partially paralyzed from a car accident in 2014.
On this week’s interview, Gorka said: “Well, and I said I’d be your champion, I’d arm wrestle him for you, so did you seal the deal with Kyle?”
“You know, he’s gonna come out and visit some of us, but I think he has bigger intentions than being an intern in Congress,” Boebert answered.
Rittenhouse himself publicly confirmed he is not interested in taking politicians up on their internship offers.
“I do not plan on accepting any internships,” he said in an interview with NewsNation. “I don’t want to get involved in politics at all. I know nothing about it, and thank everybody for their support. But I’m good, thank you.”
In the same interview, the 18-year-old spoke about his hopes to re-enroll in classes at Arizona State University so as to eventually pursue a career in nursing.
During his AmericaFest appearance, Rittenhouse was asked whether he had plans to sue media outlets for their coverage if his case, to which he responded: “I don’t know. But some accountability’s coming, I’d be on the lookout.”
Last month, Rittenhouse was cleared of all charges against him for killing 36-year-old Joseph Rosenbaum and 26-year-old Anthony Huber, as well as injuring 27-year-old Gaige Grosskreutz, at a Black Lives Matter protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin in August 2020.
Since that night, Rittenhouse was lionized by conservatives, who celebrated his acquittal as a win for armed self-defense and the Second Amendment.
Among the outpouring support, Republican members of Congress spoke of hiring him for an internship.
Before the trial’s verdict was even delivered, Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida said Rittenhouse would “probably make a pretty good congressional intern.”
Congressman Paul Gosar of Arizona later stated he will “arm wrestle” Gaetz “to get dibs for Kyle as an intern.”
On his end, Cawthorn reacted to the “not guilty” verdict by posting a video captioned: “Kyle, if you want an internship, reach out to me.”
In that video, the congressman told his followers to “defend yourself” following the highly divisive verdict, adding: “Be armed, be dangerous, and be moral.”
Despite the widespread post-trial publicity, Rittenhouse insisted he has not financially benefitted from his newfound fame.
“I haven’t been offered a penny, and I wouldn’t accept a penny because I’m out here taking back my character telling the world who I am and defending myself in the public opinion,” Rittenhouse told Fox News this month.
Mark Richards, Rittenhouse’s attorney during the Kenosha trial, told Insider he found it “disgusting” that GOP personalities attempted to profit from his client’s case.
“They’re raising money on it and you have all these Republican congressmen saying come work for me,” said Richards. “They want to trade on his celebrity and I think it’s disgusting.”
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