{"id":1735906,"date":"2022-11-12T06:03:07","date_gmt":"2022-11-12T11:03:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1735906"},"modified":"2022-11-12T07:48:09","modified_gmt":"2022-11-12T12:48:09","slug":"growing-chorus-of-senators-signal-its-time-for-mcconnell-to-go","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/growing-chorus-of-senators-signal-its-time-for-mcconnell-to-go\/","title":{"rendered":"Growing Chorus of Senators Signal It\u2019s Time for McConnell To Go"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fgrowing-chorus-of-senators-signal-its-time-for-mcconnell-to-go%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1735906&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p><em>Updated Nov. 11.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>After Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/11\/10\/the-case-against-mitch-mcconnell-for-leader\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">sabotaged<\/a> Republicans in the 2022 midterms \u2014 pulling spending from competitive GOP candidates such as Blake Masters and even actively spending money against state GOP-endorsed candidates like Alaska\u2019s Kelly Tshibaka \u2014 a growing chorus of Republicans is signaling it\u2019s time for McConnell\u2019s tenure in Senate leadership to end.<\/p>\n<p>Here are all the Republican senators and senators-elect who have so far indicated McConnell needs to go.<\/p>\n<h2>Josh Hawley<\/h2>\n<p>At a rally the day before Election Day, the soon-to-be senior senator from Missouri reportedly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/missouri-republicans-hawley-schmitt-say-senate-gop-needs-new-leadership-not-mitch-mcconnell\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a>, when asked who should lead the GOP in the Senate, \u201cnot Mitch McConnell.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m not sure if any other senator will run or not. Nobody\u2019s indicated they would. But my view is that we need new leadership in that position,\u201d he told reporters.<\/p>\n<p>In an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearwire.com\/articles\/2022\/11\/11\/josh_hawley_blasts_gop_leadership_for_midterm_losses_148459.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">interview<\/a> with RealClearPolitics on Friday, Hawley blamed McConnell and \u201cWashington Republicanism\u201d for Republicans\u2019 lack of a clear midterm strategy. \u201cI\u2019m not going to support the current leadership in the party,\u201d he reiterated. Hawley also slammed McConnell for caving to Democrats\u2019 demands on a gun control bill and a climate spending wishlist \u201cbilled as infrastructure,\u201d and for abandoning Republicans in key midterm races. <\/p>\n<h2>Marco Rubio<\/h2>\n<p>The Florida senator who earned a huge victory margin in his reelection bid took to Twitter on Friday to call for the \u201cSenate GOP leadership vote next week\u201d to be \u201cpostponed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFirst we need to make sure that those who want to lead us are genuinely committed to fighting for the priorities &#038; values of the working Americans (of every background) who gave us big wins in states like #Florida,\u201d Rubio <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/marcorubio\/status\/1591112183945269251\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">wrote<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"491\" height=\"306\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/image-2.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-283102\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/image-2.png 491w, https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/image-2-300x187.png 300w\" \/><\/figure>\n<p>Hawley <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/HawleyMO\/status\/1591113869925441536\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">amplified<\/a> Rubio\u2019s statement, adding, \u201cExactly right. I don\u2019t know why Senate GOP would hold a leadership vote for the next Congress before this election is finished,\u201d in reference to the runoff election between Republican Herschel Walker and Democrat Raphael Warnock scheduled for Dec. 6 in Georgia.<\/p>\n<p>Rubio himself could make a strong candidate to challenge McConnell. \u201cIf a united GOP is a strong GOP, Rubio is clearly a solid candidate for Leader,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MZHemingway\/status\/1591132088132042780\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">argues<\/a> The Federalist Editor-in-Chief Mollie Hemingway. \u201cWhile an establishment figure in many good ways, he also embraces and is embraced by many America First folks, doesn\u2019t have Mitch\u2019s baggage of utterly despising voters, and is appealing and savvy.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Cynthia Lummis<\/h2>\n<p>The Wyoming Republican highlighted Rubio\u2019s call for a postponed vote, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CynthiaMLummis\/status\/1591140182782537728\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">retweeting<\/a> it with just the word \u201cSecond.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"504\" height=\"274\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/image-4.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-283108\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/image-4.png 504w, https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/image-4-300x163.png 300w\" \/><\/figure>\n<h2>Mike Lee<\/h2>\n<p>The Utah Republican, who just won reelection against independent challenger Evan McMullin, reportedly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/2022\/11\/11\/gop-senators-call-for-postponing-leadership-elections-00066532\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">joined<\/a> a letter along with Wisconsin\u2019s Ron Johnson and Florida\u2019s Rick Scott calling for the GOP leadership vote to be postponed. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe need to have serious discussions within our conference as to why and what we can do to improve our chances in 2024,\u201d the letter argues. \u201cHolding leadership elections without hearing from the candidates as to how they will perform their leadership duties and before we know whether we will be in the majority or even who all our members are violates the most basic principles of a democratic process.\u201d <\/p>\n<h2>Ron Johnson<\/h2>\n<p>Johnson was calling GOP leadership into question before signing onto the letter with Lee and Scott. In an op-ed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/a-governing-agenda-for-senate-republicans-budget-fiscal-policy-regulation-tax-border-spending-progressives-2024-gop-conference-11668029907?mod=opinion_lead_pos7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">published<\/a> the day after the election in The Wall Street Journal, the newly reelected Wisconsin senator fueled speculation that he would support a challenge to McConnell\u2019s leadership. \u201cRank-and-file members should vote only for leaders who commit to passing a budget that drives a fiscally conservative appropriation process,\u201d he wrote, after McConnell <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/mitch-mcconnell-proud-of-vote-infrastructure-bill-2021-11\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">supported<\/a> Democrats\u2019 bloated \u201cinfrastructure\u201d bill and pushed for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/2022\/03\/11\/mcconnell-phone-call-congress-ukraine-aid-deal-00016583\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">spending<\/a> even more of Americans\u2019 tax dollars on Ukraine.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe simply can\u2019t let that happen,\u201d Johnson concluded of \u201cRepublicans return[ing] to business as usual.\u201d <\/p>\n<h2>Rick Scott<\/h2>\n<p>The Florida senator, who has been floated as a potential challenger to McConnell for Senate leadership, chastened McConnell back in September when the minority leader complained about Republican \u201ccandidate quality\u201d in the midterms.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen you complain and lament that we have \u2018bad candidates,\u2019 what you are really saying is that you have contempt for the voters who chose them,\u201d Scott <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/11\/10\/the-case-against-mitch-mcconnell-for-leader\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">wrote<\/a> in an op-ed. He also used his role as head of the National Republican Senatorial Committee to put money behind GOP candidates that McConnell\u2019s super PAC abandoned.<\/p>\n<p>On NBC News\u2019 \u201cMeet the Press\u201d on Sunday, Scott <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/politics\/2022-election\/rick-scott-doesnt-rule-run-majority-leader-gop-takes-senate-rcna55876\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">refused<\/a> to rule out a challenge to McConnell. \u201cI\u2019m not focused on anything except getting a majority Tuesday night,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<h2>Ted Cruz<\/h2>\n<p>The Texas senator <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/tedcruz\/status\/1591170124333342720\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">called<\/a> for postponing the Senate leadership vote late Friday afternoon. \u201cIt makes no sense for Senate to have leadership elections before GA runoff. We don\u2019t yet know whether we\u2019ll have a majority &#038; Herschel Walker deserves a say in our leadership,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCritically, we need to hear a specific plan for the next 2 yrs from any candidate for leadership,\u201d Cruz added, insinuating discontentment with McConnell\u2019s current leadership and a willingness to support a challenge to the minority leader.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"496\" height=\"291\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/image-5.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-283121\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/image-5.png 496w, https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/image-5-300x176.png 300w\" \/><\/figure>\n<h2>Lindsey Graham<\/h2>\n<p>The South Carolina Republican said back in January that he wouldn\u2019t support McConnell unless the minority leader could work with former President Donald Trump and put forth an \u201cAmerica First agenda.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>\u201cHere\u2019s the question: Can Senator McConnell effectively work with the leader of the Republican Party, Donald Trump?\u201d Graham <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/politics\/2022\/01\/13\/sen-lindsey-graham-says-he-wont-support-mitch-mcconnell-senate-gop-leader-unless-he-has-working-relationship-with-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">told<\/a> Sean Hannity of Fox News. \u201cI\u2019m not going to vote for anybody that can\u2019t have a working relationship with President Trump, to be a team, to come up with an America First agenda \u2026 because if you can\u2019t do that, you will fail.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Eric Schmitt<\/h2>\n<p>Schmitt, whom voters elected to be Missouri\u2019s newest senator on Tuesday, said in July that \u201cI think we need new leadership in the Senate.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMitch McConnell was elected to the Senate in 1985. I think the party\u2019s priorities changed pretty dramatically. And I don\u2019t think he\u2019s kept up with that,\u201d Schmitt <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/three-gop-front-runners-missouri-senate-race-vow-oppose-mcconnell-majority-leader\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a>, citing McConnell\u2019s failures to oppose Democrats\u2019 \u201cinfrastructure\u201d and gun bills.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been endorsed by Senator Ted Cruz, Senator Mike Lee. I\u2019d love to see one of them run. I would support that,\u201d he added. \u201cMitch McConnell hasn\u2019t endorsed me and I don\u2019t endorse him for leadership in the Senate.\u201d Earlier this week, Schmitt <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/missouri-republicans-hawley-schmitt-say-senate-gop-needs-new-leadership-not-mitch-mcconnell\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">confirmed<\/a> he \u201cstands by\u201d those sentiments.<\/p>\n<h2>J.D. Vance<\/h2>\n<p>The newest senator from Ohio <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/politics\/2022\/11\/01\/election-2022-latest-news\/#link-LUSJHG6FDRFCZLA7KSZQATPI3M\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">refused<\/a> to commit to backing McConnell for Senate leadership in a town hall hosted by Fox News on Nov. 1.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m certainly not voting for Chuck Schumer, that\u2019s my view,\u201d Vance responded when asked if he would support McConnell for leader if Republicans took the majority. \u201cIf Mitch McConnell is the only person that runs, that makes it a very easy decision, OK. We\u2019ll see what happens when I get to Washington.\u201d<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\" \/>\n<p>\n  Elle Purnell is an assistant editor at The Federalist, and received her B.A. in government from Patrick Henry College with a minor in journalism. Follow her work on Twitter @_etreynolds.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Updated Nov. 11. After Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell sabotaged Republicans in the 2022 midterms \u2014 pulling spending from competitive GOP candidates such as Blake Masters and even actively spending<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1735453,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[547],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1735906","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-bongino-report"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1735906","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1735906"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1735906\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1735453"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1735906"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1735906"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1735906"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}