President Trump lashed out at Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell on Monday night for acknowledging that Joe Biden had won the election, sending a slide to Republican lawmakers paying tribute to saving McConnell’s career with a tweet and robocall.
Why it matters: It’s an extraordinary flank against McConnell by the incumbent president and the most popular Republican in the party, ahead of a pivotal second election in Georgia on Jan. 5 that will determine Senate control.
- “Sadly Mitch forgot,” reads the top of the slide sent to Republican senators by Trump’s personal assistant, written in red for emphasis. “He was the first of the ship.”
Between the lines: While both the message and delivery targeted McConnell, they also brought a subtle warning to other Republicans who could follow suit as the president understands the latest straws of his election fraud claim.
- Trump’s remaining power over the GOP is not his declining authority as president, but his perception of his persistent ability to make or break politicians in their reelection campaigns.
- Many Republicans have been reluctant to criticize the president, despite a string of court losses, including at the Supreme Court, for their personal fears that an enraged Trump will attack them and turn his gang of loyal followers against them in a primary campaign.
In McConnell’s case, surviving a $ 93 million attack by veteran and Democratic challenger Amy McGrath, Trump’s slide points to a poll showing the Kentucky race down a dead end until June 19, when the president tweeted the leader of the senate endorsed.
- The slide shows that polls are again citing to 51% -40% ahead of a Trump robocall on Oct. 31. McConnell’s final margin of victory over McGrath was 57.8% -38.2%.
- Notably, McConnell’s wife, Elaine Chao, still serves in Trump’s cabinet as a transportation secretary.