Rep. Kevin McCarthy leaves a House Republican Conference meeting at the US Capitol on Dec. 5, 2023.Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images Rachel Hadas, Rutgers University – Newark Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s departure from Congress brings to mind ambition and the other side of ambition’s coin, humiliation – the thirst for fame and power on one side, ignominious failure on the other. Classical literature abounds with ambitious characters; heroes are by definition ambitious. McCarthy says he will “serve America in new ways.” When heroes are defeated, they don’t usually retire into private lif…
