For the first time in 17 years, Senate Republicans will hold an open contest for choosing their next leader. Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who has served as the party’s leader in the upper legislative body for over a decade and a half, announced earlier this week that he will relinquish power in November.
At least five candidates are expected to enter the leadership race, including Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R-SD), Republican Conference Chairman Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY), Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), and National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) Chairman Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT).
The National Pulse has compiled a breakdown of each leadership contender’s legislative and political history, analyzing who best fits with former President Donald Trump’s America First agenda.
THE ESTABLISHMENT’S MAN.
Sen. John Thune of South Dakota has long been the expected successor to Mitch McConnell. Thune served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1997 until 2003. In the 2004 general election, Thune narrowly defeated incumbent Sen. Tom Daschle (D-SD), who served as the Democrat Minority Leader.
The South Dakota Republican quickly rose through the Senate Republican leadership ranks, serving successively as chair of the Senate Republican Policy Committee (2009 to 2012), chair of the Senate Republican Conference (2012 to 2019), and as the Republican whip since 2019.
For populists and other supporters of former President Trump, the elevation of Thune to Republican leader would be a significant setback. The South Dakota Senator is closely aligned with special interests like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and is a staunch war hawk. Thune has consistently supported U.S. interventions in Iraq, Syria, and – most recently – Ukraine. On immigration, Thune has a “C+” career rating from NumbersUSA. Heritage Action gives Thune a lifetime score of only 62 percent as a conservative legislator.
TRUMP’S DEFENDER.
Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) is the third highest-ranking Senate Republican and one of former President Trump’s more staunch defenders. While he began his political career as a moderate Republican, the Wyoming Senator has recently become increasingly conservative.
Barrasso has consistently defended Trump against attacks by the corporate media and Congressional Democrats. In 2018, he pushed back against Democrat accusations regarding Trump’s business dealings in Russia, stating: “The president is an international businessman; I’m not surprised he was doing international business.” The Wyoming Republican opposed Democrat efforts to impeach Trump and voted against the partisan January 6th Committee show trial.
On immigration, Barrasso only has a “C+” rating from NumbersUSA. Meanwhile, Heritage Action gives Barrasso a lifetime score of 72 percent as a conservative lawmaker.
THE TEXAS MODERATE.
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) ’s career in Congress has taken the opposite course of Sen. Barrasso – with the Texas Republican becoming increasingly more moderate. As a member of the Texas Supreme Court in the late 1990s, Cornyn was instrumental in upholding the state’s anti-sodomy law – which was later declared unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in Lawrence v. Texas.
While Cornyn has portrayed himself as an ally of former President Trump, the Texas Senator worked against several of the Republican President’s core agenda items. Cornyn opposed Trump’s efforts to end NAFTA and negotiate a new North American trade deal. The Texan lobbied to support the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement and rebelled against Trump’s trade tariffs. Most recently, Cornyn has been engaged in an ongoing social media feud with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, an ally of former President Trump.
Cornyn has only managed a “C” rating on immigration, according to the NumbersUSA scorecard. Heritage Action gives the Texas Republican a 64 percent rating as a conservative.
FLORIDA MAN.
Florida’s Republican Senator Rick Scott is expected to enter the leadership race next week. Scott – a former Governor of Florida – has been one of the more outspoken opponents of Sen. McConnell’s leadership. While his anti-McConnell stance has endeared him to some conservatives, Sen. Scott’s record in the Senate is more aligned with the likes of former House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) than Donald Trump.
As the chairman of the NRSC during the 2022 mid-term elections, Sen. Scott presided over a disastrous performance by Republican Senate candidates. Not only were Democrats able to hold the Senate, they were able to gain a seat in Pennsylvania with the election of John Fetterman (D-PA). The poor showing in the 2022 mid-term elections has damaged Scott’s reputation among his colleagues, making him somewhat of a long shot to be elected leader.
Sen. Scott is one of the stronger Senators on immigration policy. He has earned a “B” rating from NumbersUSA. His lifetime score as a lawmaker from Heritage Action is equally impressive at 94 percent.
TRUMP’S CHOICE.
NRSC chairman Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) appears to be former President Donald Trump’s preference for the next Republican leader in the Senate. The Montana Republican oversees the Republican election effort to retake the Senate majority this November. Trump and Daines have worked closely ahead of the fall election on Senate candidate recruitment, aiming to provide the former Republican President new allies on Capitol Hill should he retake the White House.
Daines, first elected to the Senate in 2014, has positioned himself as one of the few Senators who holds sway among the Republican Establishment and conservatives. According to 538, over his career, Daines has voted with former President Trump’s agenda 83.6 percent of the time. The Montana Republican also opposed the certification of Pennsylvania and Arizona’s election results following the 2020 presidential election.
Numbers USA rates Daines as a “B” on immigration policy. His lifetime score from Heritage Action is less impressive at 79 percent.
