Michael Tackett, Associated Press
Posted on Wednesday, February 28, 2024 12:39 pm EST
WASHINGTON (AP) — Mitch McConnell, the longest-serving Senate leader in history who held power in the face of dramatic upheavals in the Republican Party for nearly two decades, will leave that post in November.
McConnell, who turned 82 last week, was scheduled to announce his decision Wednesday on the Senate floor, a place he looked at in awe from the back benches when he arrived in 1985 and where he grew increasingly comfortable in the seat. first row that was offered to him. the party leaders.
“One of the most underrated talents in life is knowing when it is time to move on to the next chapter of life,” he said in prepared remarks obtained by The Associated Press. “So today I stand before you … to tell you that this will be my last term as Senate Republican leader.”
His decision marks a powerful ideological transition underway in the Republican Party, from Ronald Reagan’s brand of traditional conservatism and strong international alliances to the fiery, often isolationist populism of former President Donald Trump.
McConnell said he plans to serve out his term in the Senate, which ends in January 2027, “albeit from a different seat in the chamber.” Aides said McConnell’s announcement about the leadership position was not related to his health. The Kentucky senator suffered a concussion from a fall last year and two public episodes in which his face briefly froze while he spoke.
“As I thought about when I would deliver some news to the Senate, I always envisioned a time when I would have complete clarity and peace about the end of my job,” McConnell said in his prepared remarks. “A moment in which I am sure I have helped preserve the ideals in which I firmly believe. He arrived today”.
The senator had been under increasing pressure from the restive and sometimes hostile wing of his party that has aligned itself firmly with Trump. The two have been estranged since December 2020, when McConnell refused to accept Trump’s lie that Democrat Joe Biden’s election as president was the product of fraud.
But while McConnell’s critics within the Republican conference had grown louder, their numbers had not increased appreciably, an indicator of McConnell’s strategic and tactical skill and his ability to understand the needs of his fellow Republican senators.
McConnell did not give any specific reason for the timing of his decision, which he has been contemplating for months, but cited the recent death of his wife’s younger sister as a moment that sparked introspection. “The end of my contributions is closer than I would prefer,” McConnell said.
But his comments were also light at times when he talked about the arc of his Senate career.
He noted that when he came to the Senate, “I was glad someone remembered my name.” During his 1984 campaign, when Reagan was visiting Kentucky, the president called him “Mitch O’Donnell.”
McConnell backed Reagan’s vision of America’s role in the world, and the senator has persisted in the face of opposition, including Trump, that Congress should include a foreign assistance package that includes $60 billion for Ukraine. .
“I have no conflict about the good within our country and the irreplaceable role we play as leader of the free world,” McConnell said.
Against all odds, he managed to secure 22 Republican votes for the package now being considered by the House.
“Believe me, I know the politics within my party at this particular time. I have many mistakes. Misunderstanding politics is not one of them,” McConnell said. “That said, I believe more strongly than ever that America’s global leadership is essential to preserving the shining city on a hill that Ronald Reagan spoke of. “As long as I breathe on this earth, I will defend American exceptionalism.”
Trump has pushed the party hard to the ideological right, questioning long-standing military alliances like NATO and international trade agreements and pushing for a harsh crackdown on immigration, while clinging to the falsehood that the 2020 election was stolen from him.
McConnell and Trump had worked together during Trump’s first term, restructuring the Supreme Court and the federal judiciary with a much more conservative image, and on tax legislation. But there was also friction from the beginning, with Trump frequently attacking the senator.
Their relationship basically ended since Trump refused to accept the Electoral College results. But the rift deepened dramatically after the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021. McConnell placed blame and blame on Trump and said he should be held accountable to the criminal justice system for his actions.
McConnell’s critics insist he could have done more, including voting to convict Trump during his second impeachment trial. McConnell did not do so, arguing that since Trump was no longer in office, he could not be impeached.
Instead of losing prominence after the Capitol riot, Trump continued to assert his control over the party and is on a clear path to the Republican nomination. Other members of the Senate Republican leadership have backed Trump. McConnell has not done so, and that has drawn criticism from other Republican senators.
McConnell’s path to power was not linear, but from the day he arrived in the Senate in 1985 and took his seat as the lowest-ranking Republican senator, he set his sights on being the party’s leader. What set him apart was that many other Senate leaders wanted to run for president. McConnell wanted to preside over the Senate. He lost elections for lower party positions before rising steadily and finally became party leader in 2006 and won nine consecutive elections.
He recently rejected a challenge led by Sen. Rick Scott of Florida last November.
McConnell built his power base through a combination of care and support for his members, including understanding their political imperatives. After seeing the potential danger of a rising Tea Party, he also established a super political action committee, the Senate Leadership Fund, which has provided hundreds of millions of dollars in support of Republican candidates.
Despite concerns about his health, his colleagues have said in recent months that they believe he has recovered. McConnell did not have any cognitive impairment, but he did have some additional physical limitations.
“I love the Senate,” he said in his prepared remarks. “It has been my life. “There may have been more distinguished members of this body throughout our history, but I doubt there are any who have more admiration for it.”
But, he added, “Father Time remains undefeated. I am no longer the young man sitting in the back, waiting for his colleagues to remember my name. It is time for the next generation of leadership.”
There will be a time to remember, he said, but not today.
“I still have enough gas in the tank to completely disappoint my critics and I intend to do so with all the enthusiasm to which they are accustomed.”