Mitch McConnell re-elected Senate GOP leader, defeating Rick Scott
The Mitch is back.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) will remain in that post for another two years after he turned back a challenge from Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), as GOP recriminations rolled on over their lackluster midterm results.
McConnell, 80, had the support of 37 senators, while Scott got 10 votes and one senator voted “present”, CNN reported, citing two members of the GOP conference.
The Kentuckian’s victory puts him on track to become the longest-serving Senate party leader, surpassing the 16 years Montana Democrat Mike Mansfield led his party from 1961 to 1977. McConnell has led the Senate GOP since 2007.
“I’m not going anywhere,” McConnell told reporters after emerging from the meeting and giving a thumbs-up.
The private vote in the Capitol’s Old Senate Chamber took place against the backdrop of Republican discontent over their failure to regain the Senate in last week’s midterm elections — despite public disapproval of President Biden’s handling of the economy amid the highest inflation in four decades.
The 69-year-old Scott, a former Florida governor, insisted to his colleagues it was time for a change, writing in his candidate letter: “If you simply want to stick with the status quo, don’t vote for me.”
However, Scott came under fire over his two-year tenure running the Senate Republicans’ campaign arm, which spent more than $235 million, failed to flip a single seat, and lost the open Pennsylvania seat held by the retiring GOP Sen. Pat Toomey.
In response to calls for an audit of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, Scott claimed Wednesday he had learned that committee staffers had been paid “hundreds of thousands of dollars in unauthorized and improper bonuses” during the previous election cycle, under the chairmanship of Sen. Todd Young of Indiana.
“This is what children do when they are caught with their hand in the cookie jar,” former NRSC executive director Kevin McLaughlin told Politico in response. “They lash out. Obviously this is crazy and we welcome a full audit.”
Scott and McConnell traded what colleagues said were “candid” and “lively” barbs during a lengthy private GOP senators lunch Tuesday that lasted several hours. They sparred over the midterms, the quality of the GOP candidates who ran and their differences over fundraising.
During the luncheon, some 20 senators made their cases for the two men. Some members directly challenged Scott in McConnell’s defense, questioning Scott’s management of the NRSC, according to a person familiar with the meeting and granted anonymity to discuss it.
Among those who took issue with the campaign chief, according to reports, were Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Susan Collins of Maine, and Thom Tillis of North Carolina.
Many in the party viewed the Floridian’s ascension as an effort to build his national political profile and donor network ahead of a potential presidential bid in 2024. Some were irked by promotional materials from the NRSC that were heavy on Scott’s own biography, while focusing less on the candidates who are up for election.
Prior to reelecting McConnell leader, the GOP conference rejected a motion by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) to delay the vote until after the Dec. 6 Georgia Senate runoff, when Republican Herschel Walker seeks to unseat Democrat incumbent Raphael Warnock. Walker was eligible to vote in the leadership election but was not present.
Outgoing Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) also missed the conference meeting to be with his wife while she recovers from a non-life-threatening seizure suffered over the weekend.
Cruz said the conference had a “cordial discussion, but a serious discussion” about how to work effectively in the minority, while Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) confirmed he had been one of the 10 who backed Scott.
“I voted for change,” he told reporters. “I accept the results of the conference, and I hope we can be better.”
McConnell’s top leadership ranks remained stable, with Sen. John Thune of South Dakota elected GOP whip, and John Barrasso of Wyoming in the No. 3 spot as chairman of the GOP conference. Steve Daines of Montana was elected to chair the NRSC, replacing Scott.
With Post wires