{"id":2251904,"date":"2024-05-24T06:31:02","date_gmt":"2024-05-24T10:31:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/senate-conservatives-keep-gop-leader-race-on-ice-despite-rick-scott-shake-up\/"},"modified":"2024-05-24T06:35:02","modified_gmt":"2024-05-24T10:35:02","slug":"senate-conservatives-keep-gop-leader-race-on-ice-despite-rick-scott-shake-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/senate-conservatives-keep-gop-leader-race-on-ice-despite-rick-scott-shake-up\/","title":{"rendered":"Senate conservatives delay GOP leader race despite Rick Scott&#8217;s impact"},"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\">20<\/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%2Fsenate-conservatives-keep-gop-leader-race-on-ice-despite-rick-scott-shake-up%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=2251904&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>Senate conservatives are delaying full support for Senator Rick Scott&#8217;s bid for GOP\u200c leadership, stalling succession plans after Senator Mitch McConnell&#8217;s announcement. While Scott&#8217;s entry\u200d energized the race, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/watch-israels-iron-dome-strikes-down-scores-of-rockets-fired-by-hamas\/\" title=\"WATCH: Israel\u2019s Iron Dome Strikes Down Scores Of Rockets Fired By Hamas\">key figures<\/a> like Ted Cruz and Mike Lee remain undecided. The spotlight\u200d is on contenders Thune and Cornyn as the\u200c leadership decision \u2064unfolds slowly, with discussions shaping the party&#8217;s \u2064future direction.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/senate-republicans\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Senate conservatives<\/a> are holding off on endorsing Sen. Rick Scott\u2019s (R-FL) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/3014024\/rick-scott-second-run-replace-mcconnell-gop-leader\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>run for GOP leader<\/a>, keeping the race to succeed Sen. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/mitch-mcconnell\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Mitch McConnell<\/a> (R-KY) effectively frozen six months out from the secret ballot.<\/p>\n<p>Talk of the leader contest has receded into the background since McConnell announced his retirement from leadership in February. Two contenders viewed as McConnell\u2019s natural successors \u2014 Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R-SD) and Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), a former whip \u2014 stepped forward in the days that followed, but the long lead time until votes are cast, likely in November, has turned one of the most consequential decisions for the conference in decades into a sleepy affair.<\/p>\n<p>Almost no Senate Republicans have announced their support for any of McConnell\u2019s possible successors.<\/p>\n<p>Scott\u2019s entry into the race on Wednesday added a jolt of interest. He\u2019s made support for former President Donald Trump a bigger litmus test and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/how-to-show-lockdowns-are-killing-more-people-than-the-virus\/\" title=\"How To Show Lockdowns Are Killing More People Than The Virus\">put forward<\/a> a platform that will pressure his rivals to make concessions to the right.<\/p>\n<p>Yet his closest allies have not rushed to endorse him, even as they praise the conservative vision he\u2019s laid out.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m gonna listen to all the candidates. I\u2019m not committing to anyone,\u201d said Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), who voted for Scott when he unsuccessfully challenged McConnell for the top leadership post in 2022.<\/p>\n<p>Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), who gave Scott\u2019s nominating speech in that leadership race, took the same view in a <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/BasedMikeLee\/status\/1793445488101847045\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>statement<\/a>. He called Scott a \u201cdear friend and a true conservative\u201d and welcomed his decision to lay out a concrete vision for how he would run the conference, including transparency and an open amendment process.<\/p>\n<p>But he, like other conservatives, has decided to withhold his support until he\u2019s had a chance to press Cornyn and Thune, regarded as the front-runners in the race, on how they might govern.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m not committing to anybody right now,\u201d Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO), elected to the Senate in 2022, said. \u201cI\u2019m gonna talk to everybody that\u2019s running and have some real conversations about the direction of our conference.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure><figcaption>Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2024. (AP Photo\/Jose Luis Magana)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>It would be a shock to see Scott\u2019s allies, especially those who supported him in 2022, vote for a more establishment candidate this time around, at least in the first round of voting.<\/p>\n<p>Scott, who failed to unseat McConnell last time in a 37-10 vote, represents conservative dissatisfaction with the \u201cstatus quo,\u201d while Cornyn and Thune are among McConnell\u2019s closest advisers.<\/p>\n<p>Scott will have trouble attracting some of the more centrist Republicans, a fact he alluded to in a \u201cDear Colleague\u201d letter announcing his run, but his bid could serve to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/senate-gop-plots-maximum-pain-for-democrats-dismissing-mayorkas-impeachment-trial\/\" title=\"Senate Republicans plan to inflict 'maximum pain' on Democrats by rejecting Mayorkas impeachment trial\">give conservatives leverage<\/a>. Scott will fracture an already divided race further, offering his allies a chance to demand rules changes.<\/p>\n<p>Cornyn, in particular, has made a play for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/conservative-rebels-frustrated-after-decadeslong-fight-for-gop-control\/\" title=\"Conservative rebels disappointed by prolonged GOP control battle\">conservative votes<\/a>, though he will be dogged by certain bipartisan bills he supported in previous Congresses. He has embraced term limits for the leader post and offered a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/2895690\/cornyn-first-john-announce-bid-republican-leader\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>more candid critique<\/a> of Senate leadership than Thune in announcing his run.<\/p>\n<p>Sen. Mike Braun (R-IN), a member of the conservative Breakfast Club, expects most of Scott\u2019s 2022 backers will carry over this year. \u201cAnd I think he\u2019ll add some,\u201d he said, ascribing the lack of endorsements to the time Republicans still have to make up their mind. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title><strong>CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think since it\u2019s far enough down the road, that doesn\u2019t surprise me much,\u201d Braun said. \u201cI think that when it comes down to it, since you\u2019ve got now three options, it would be natural to say you\u2019re gonna kick the tires and make your decision along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Braun, for his part, is endorsing Scott\u2019s run, but he will not get a vote in the leadership election due to his retirement from Congress as he vies to become Indiana\u2019s next governor. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Senate conservatives are postponing support for Sen. Rick Scott&#8217;s bid for GOP leadership, stalling the succession race after Sen. Mitch McConnell&#8217;s departure plans. With six months until the closed-door vote, speculation about contenders has dwindled<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2651,"featured_media":2251905,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/AP24037734197743-1-1024x591.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2251904","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/AP24037734197743-1-1024x591.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2251904","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\/2651"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2251904"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2251904\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2251905"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2251904"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2251904"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2251904"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}