For quite some time, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has said and done things that caused many in the conservative movement to question his intentions.
During the midterm elections, McConnell openly cast doubt on the quality of GOP Senate candidates. In doing this, he also stated that candidate quality could hinder Republicans’ efforts to regain the Senate majority.
However, the real red flag arose when McConnell refused to back particular GOP Senate candidates, like Blake Masters in Arizona. The Senate Minority Leader’s gripe with Masters was over the latter stating he would not vote for McConnell to lead the GOP chamber.
In the wake of the midterms, McConnell was challenged for the position of Senate Minority Leader, yet ultimately survived. Now, some new commentary from him is once again causing concerns.
Missing the Bigger Picture
On Wednesday afternoon, McConnell held a press conference where he spoke about the message he has for Biden. This message entailed McConnell’s interest in Republicans being able to find common points of agreement with Biden.
However, this soundbite, to many Americans, came off as tone-deaf, given the circumstances. For one thing, this interest in finding common ground with the left is not reciprocal.
In fact, Democrats — when they controlled the House and Senate simultaneously — intentionally used their majority to freeze GOP members out of the lawmaking process. This is why the Inflation Reduction Act and American Rescue Plan were passed into law without a single Republican vote.
McConnell: "My message to [Biden] is let's find some things between the 40 yard lines that we can agree on and we did some of that this year: infrastructure, chips, school safety, mental health." pic.twitter.com/R10DWW1WIi
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) November 16, 2022
To make matters worse, McConnell’s press conference earlier this week comes as Democrats have been clear that for them, all knives are out against Republicans.
In Democrats’ quest to keep their monopoly over the federal government, they repeatedly claimed that the GOP having any sort of majority in Congress would endanger democracy.
Finally, McConnell’s talking points also failed to get to the heart of issues — like inflation, gas prices, and crime — that are hurting Americans with Biden in the White House.
Business as Usual
McConnell’s press conference earlier this week only further contributed to the perception that he is about cutting deals for his own gain above all else.
It has been pointed out by some that McConnell would prefer Republicans be in the minority with him leading the Senate, rather than for the GOP to have the majority without him in charge.
McConnell: "I'm not going anywhere." pic.twitter.com/8wbzmfTs8M
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) November 16, 2022
Finally, on Wednesday, the Senate Minority Leader appeared to send a veiled message to his critics by promising he is “not going anywhere.”
