{"id":2608703,"date":"2026-05-31T07:14:02","date_gmt":"2026-05-31T11:14:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mcconnell-lets-loose-on-trump-on-his-way-to-retirement\/"},"modified":"2026-05-31T07:16:19","modified_gmt":"2026-05-31T11:16:19","slug":"mcconnell-lets-loose-on-trump-on-his-way-to-retirement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mcconnell-lets-loose-on-trump-on-his-way-to-retirement\/","title":{"rendered":"McConnell lets loose on Trump on his way to retirement"},"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%2Fmcconnell-lets-loose-on-trump-on-his-way-to-retirement%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=2608703&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>Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is entering retirement with more freedom to challenge President Donald Trump then he had while leading Senate Republicans. The article highlights how, in recent months, McConnell has openly criticized Trump on specific issues-most notably denouncing a Justice Department \u201canti-weaponization\u201d fund that would compensate people pardoned after the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S.Capitol.<\/p>\n<p>Even though McConnell has sometimes <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-pitches-comprehensive-crime-bill-while-congress-readies-dc-measures\/\" title=\"Trump pitches &#039;comprehensive&#039; crime bill while Congress readies DC measures\">offered cautious support<\/a> for parts of Trump\u2019s agenda, he has also voted against several Trump Cabinet nominees early in Trump\u2019s term, opposed elements of Trump-backed legislation such as the SAVE America Act (which he says risks taking over election administration), and criticized Trump-era policies including \u201cillegal\u201d tariffs and perceived accommodation toward Russia. After moving away from leadership, he appears increasingly willing to speak his mind, describing himself as \u201cliberated\u201d from the burdens of power.<\/p>\n<p>The piece also describes McConnell\u2019s partial reconciliation with Trump, including attending Trump\u2019s inauguration, but stresses that their relationship has been more convenient than warm. His approach in the second term is portrayed as selective: focus on targeted ideological contrasts-especially on foreign policy and defense spending as key Pentagon appropriator-while <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >avoiding constant direct clashes<\/a>. The article contrasts this restraint with other retiring Republicans who are more frequent press critics of Trump, and notes that Trump has sometimes attacked McConnell personally (calling him \u201cbitter\u201d and criticizing his vote record), while also defending him at times when leadership disputes arise.<\/p>\n<p>with McConnell set to leave the Senate and likely replaced by Rep. Andy Barr, the article frames his remaining time in office as serving as an institutional counterweight to Trump\u2019s \u201cAmerica First\u201d populism, rather than negotiating every conflict as he did when he was a party leader.  <\/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<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sen. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/mitch-mcconnell\/\">Mitch McConnell<\/a> (R-KY) is sailing into retirement with a political luxury he never had as Senate GOP leader: the chance to openly break with President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\">Donald Trump<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some of McConnell\u2019s most biting criticism came last week when he denounced an <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4579639\/gop-senators-spurn-anti-weaponization-fund-phone-data\/\">\u201canti-weaponization\u201d fund<\/a> the Justice Department might use to compensate those pardoned after storming the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.<\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4586929\/democrats-demand-kash-patel-personal-travel-fbi-vip-snorkel\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Democrats demand list of Patel\u2019s personal travel as FBI head after \u2018VIP snorkel\u2019 story<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4585546\/ted-cruz-snaps-back-gavin-newsom\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Ted Cruz snaps back at Gavin Newsom\u2019s \u2018good boy\u2019 AI dog photo<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4583907\/trump-cornyn-texas-senate-loss-sway\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Trump loses sway over Cornyn after Texas Senate loss<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cSo the nation\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/after-whitmer-ally-rejects-call-for-investigation-gop-hints-at-funding-special-prosecutor\/\" title=\"After Whitmer Ally Rejects Call For Investigation, GOP Hints At Funding Special Prosecutor\">top law enforcement official<\/a> is asking for a slush fund to pay people who assault cops? Utterly stupid, morally wrong \u2014 take your pick,\u201d he said in a statement.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At other times, McConnell has critiqued the administration\u2019s \u201c<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mcconnell.senate.gov\/public\/index.cfm\/pressreleases?ID=188A3009-4D9F-444F-A82F-F835CF6C3589\">illegal<\/a>\u201d tariffs and Trump\u2019s perceived <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/SenMcConnell\/status\/1991993757303288242?s=20\">coziness with Russia<\/a>. He\u2019s also one of the few Republican wild cards on the Senate floor.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">McConnell voted against three of Trump\u2019s Cabinet nominees at the outset of his second term. More recently, he helped sink a vote on the SAVE America Act, a Trump-backed bill that he says, if passed, would be tantamount to a federal takeover of elections.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">McConnell suggested that he did not want to relitigate their <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2021\/02\/16\/968475230\/trump-blasts-mcconnell-and-his-leadership-in-lengthy-response-to-recent-criticis\">years of enmity<\/a> when Trump returned to the White House. And in a sign of reconciliation, McConnell <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/DISivak\/status\/1881360849383915819?s=20\">attended the president\u2019s inauguration<\/a> with his wife Elaine Chao, despite Trump\u2019s history of taunting her with <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/1573857\/watch-elaine-chao-dismisses-trump-attack-dont-make-a-point-of-responding\/\">racially tinged attacks<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI expect to support most of what this administration is trying to accomplish,\u201d McConnell <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/mitch-mcconnell-against-several-trump-actions-expects-to-back-most-administration-decisions-60-minutes-transcript\/\">said<\/a> at the time. \u201cSo, what happened in the past is irrelevant to me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Still, it would be easy to lump McConnell into the emerging \u201cYOLO\u201d caucus, <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/politics\/elections\/the-yolo-caucus-is-growing-what-does-it-have-planned-00e4211d\">a buzzy nickname<\/a> for the group of retiring Republicans who are <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4573703\/bill-cassidy-no-regrets-after-primary-loss\/\">no longer worried<\/a> about what a critical remark would do to their political career, or their relationship with the president.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In fact, McConnell seemingly relished in his newfound freedom when he stepped down after nearly two decades as GOP leader, admitting to colleagues and the press that he felt \u201c<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/11\/25\/us\/politics\/mitch-mcconnell-senate-leadership.html\">liberated<\/a>\u201d from the burden of governing and <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/mitch-mcconnell-against-several-trump-actions-expects-to-back-most-administration-decisions-60-minutes-transcript\/\">planned to be more outspoken<\/a> as a rank-and-file member.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">McConnell announced that he would retire from leadership in early 2024, before Trump won a second term in the White House. A year later, he confirmed what many had suspected: that he would not seek another term representing Kentucky after four decades in the Senate.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">McConnell is <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4573419\/andy-barr-daniel-cameron-kentucky-senate-gop-primary-results\/\">slated to be replaced<\/a> next year by Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY), a congressman who once interned for McConnell but successfully bridged the divide with Trump and earned his endorsement.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Over the last year and a half, McConnell has softened the blow with <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mcconnell.senate.gov\/public\/index.cfm\/pressreleases?ID=E8C83CDB-AF33-4E16-8E35-E19534265E16\">stray compliments<\/a> to Trump. In a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/SenMcConnell\/status\/1946382539355996474\">brief encounter<\/a> at the White House last year, McConnell <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.courier-journal.com\/story\/news\/politics\/2025\/08\/04\/fancy-farm-2025-mitch-mcconnell-speech-reaction-legacy\/85197713007\/?gnt-cfr=1&#038;gca-cat=p&#038;gca-uir=true&#038;gca-epti=z11xx47p119650c119650e1147xxv11xx47d--93--b--93--&#038;gca-ft=242&#038;gca-ds=sophi\">praised<\/a> the president\u2019s decision to strike Iran\u2019s nuclear facilities, a prelude to the war that began in February.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">McConnell also avoids targeting the president directly in his statements, choosing to chide his advisers as Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), another retiring Republican, frequently does when leveling criticism.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Last month, McConnell <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/opinions\/2026\/04\/28\/mitch-mcconnell-congress-funded-ukraine-pentagon-is-stalling\/\">penned an op-ed<\/a> questioning why Elbridge Colby, one of Trump\u2019s defense undersecretaries, was \u201cstonewalling\u201d Congress on $400 million in delayed assistance to Ukraine.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4422411\/thom-tillis-trump-legacy-growing-white-house-criticism\/\"><strong>THOM TILLIS APPEALS TO TRUMP \u2018LEGACY\u2019 WITH GROWING WHITE HOUSE CRITICISM<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Still, McConnell no longer has to manage his relationship with Trump the way he did as a member of Senate leadership and largely <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/newshour\/politics\/new-book-reveals-what-mcconnell-called-trump-behind-his-back-after-the-2020-election\">held back<\/a> during the president\u2019s first term.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The two had a marriage of convenience that allowed McConnell to cement a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/2877156\/mcconnell-was-trumps-essential-partner-in-crafting-supreme-court-that-reversed-roe\/\">conservative majority on the Supreme Court<\/a> and enact other Republican priorities, and only <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.c-span.org\/clip\/news-conference\/senator-mcconnell-calls-presidents-lynching-comment-an-unfortunate-choice-of-words\/4824087\">occasionally<\/a> did he reproach some of Trump\u2019s more incendiary remarks.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">His most forceful comments, after the 2021 Capitol riot, came once the president was on his way out of office.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now, McConnell, 84, is in the twilight of his career and has a goal focused more on his party\u2019s direction. He\u2019s a Reaganite and an institutionalist, and he\u2019s using what little time left he has in the Senate to serve as a policy counterweight to Trump\u2019s brand of \u201cAmerica First\u201d populism.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">McConnell\u2019s approach to a second Trump presidency has been to focus on the narrow set of issues where he feels he can draw the sharpest ideological contrast, particularly on foreign policy, and, as the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-muscles-out-chicago-prosecutor-hot-on-the-heels-of-powerful-dems\/\" title=\"Biden Muscles Out Chicago Prosecutor Hot on the Heels of Powerful Dems\">top appropriator<\/a> for the Pentagon budget, has criticized the president on everything from peace talks with Ukraine to his <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mcconnell.senate.gov\/public\/index.cfm\/pressreleases?ID=A7867E0A-D204-4DA0-A82D-AEC0A9F0CBEC\">hostility toward NATO<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Economically, the biggest point of friction has been tariffs, and McConnell has not shied away from voting accordingly. He\u2019s repeatedly joined a small group of Senate Republicans to oppose Trump\u2019s duties, retorting after one vote that \u201cno cross-eyed reading of Reagan\u201d could undo the economic harm of trade wars.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Owing to his retirement, McConnell has drawn less attention than other Senate Republicans on the outs with Trump. Two of them, Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA), were dramatically ousted from their seats this month by a Trump-backed challenger.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And compared to other Republicans with an independent streak, McConnell\u2019s commentary looks pretty restrained. He\u2019s long avoided hallway interviews and prefers to deliver statements in the form of op-eds and the occasional speech from the Senate floor.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By contrast, Trump is being needled almost weekly by Tillis and other GOP senators whose chattiness with the press has drawn the ire of the president. Last week, Trump accused Tillis of \u201cscrewing\u201d the Republican Party with his <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4579903\/thom-tillis-trump-stupid-stuff-hurting-gop\/\">criticism of the White House<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When McConnell has registered on Trump\u2019s radar, it\u2019s been for his votes. Trump called him \u201cbitter\u201d and <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.c-span.org\/clip\/white-house-event\/user-clip-donald-trump-on-mitch-mcconnell\/5153520\">trashed his tenure as GOP leader<\/a> when he voted against Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. last year over his vaccine skepticism. McConnell is a childhood survivor of polio.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4581932\/thune-trump-rough-patch-senate-frustrations-boil-over\/\"><strong>THUNE NAVIGATES FRESH ROUGH PATCH WITH TRUMP AS SENATE FRUSTRATIONS BOIL OVER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On tariffs, Trump <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/@realDonaldTrump\/114266599439835683\">fumed<\/a> that McConnell and several other \u201cno\u201d votes were suffering from \u201cTrump derangement syndrome\u201d and had been \u201cextremely difficult to deal with\u201d for Republican leadership.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump came to McConnell\u2019s defense more recently, claiming that one of his aides had embarrassed him at a committee hearing and should be fired. He then proceeded to <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/@realDonaldTrump\/116565310767957780\">slip in a dig at McConnell<\/a> for \u201cstupidly\u201d opposing his efforts to eliminate the filibuster.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sen. Mitch McConnell heads into retirement with rare freedom to openly criticize President Trump<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2651,"featured_media":2608704,"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\/2026\/05\/AP22320784116000-e1780082418597.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[32319,34365,5894,7620,3740],"class_list":["post-2608703","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-donald-trump","tag-mitch-mcconnell","tag-politics","tag-retirement","tag-senate"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/AP22320784116000-e1780082418597.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2608703","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=2608703"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2608703\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2608707,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2608703\/revisions\/2608707"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2608704"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2608703"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2608703"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2608703"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}