Despite recent calls from his Republican colleagues to step down as Senate Minority Leader, Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has expressed his intention to remain in power.
“I’ve had a small group of persistent critics the whole time I’ve been in this job. They had their shot,” McConnell said in an interview with POLITICO, referring to Sen. Rick Scott’s (R-FL) challenge to his leadership in 2022.
Much has changed since 2022, however. McConnell now faces increasing criticism from his Republican colleagues regarding the Ukraine-Border supplemental funding bill. The Senate Minority Leader blamed the same “persistent critics” for the bill’s lack of hope of passage in the Senate.
“The reason we’ve been talking about the border is because they wanted to, the persistent critics,” said McConnell. “You can’t pass a bill without dealing with a Democratic president and a Democratic Senate.”
McConnell’s critics contend, however, that the ‘deal’ negotiated under McConnell’s watch contained nothing for Republicans to rally behind. While the ‘border bill’ provides billions of dollars in aid for Ukraine and Israel, it does little to secure the border.
“I think a Republican leader should actually lead this conference and should advance the priorities of Republicans,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said during a Tuesday press conference in which he called for McConnell to step down. Last year, a poll found that 75 percent of Republicans wanted McConnell to relinquish his Senate leadership position.
