The Republican next in line to succeed U.S. House Speaker John Boehner owes his success, in part, to the same grassroots conservatives who have pushed his boss to the exit.
California Representative Kevin McCarthy vaulted to the No. 3 leadership position in the House of Representatives after his party won control of the chamber in 2010 by harnessing the conservative Tea Party movement.
He climbed to the No. 2 spot last year, when House Republican Leader Eric Cantor lost his seat as representative from Virginia to a Tea Party challenger.