Senate Republican Conference Chair John Barrasso (R-WY) has decided to run for whip next Congress, taking a pass on a race for leader and cementing Senate Minority Whip John Thune as the frontrunner, Punchbowl News reports.
Thune Will Run to Be Senate GOP Leader
Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R-SD) told KELO that he’s running to succeed Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY).
Said Thune: “I’m going to do everything I can to convince my colleagues.”
Super Thursday
John Ellis suggests President Biden praise Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) at the State of the Union address on Thursday night.
“Biden’s remarks will put a large number of Republican members of the Senate and the House of Representatives in an uncomfortable position. They know they should stand up and applaud McConnell, a party leader for four decades and one who raised hundreds of millions of dollars for GOP candidates all across the country. They also know that Big Don will be watching and making mental notes of who stood and who remained seated.”
“He will be unhappy with those who stood. He hates McConnell. He interprets expressions of support for McConnell as acts of disloyalty to him.”
Joe Klein offers another possibility: “At some point during the speech, Marjorie Taylor Greene or one of the other right-wing nutters will stand up and start heckling the President. Biden should call her out by name: ‘Sit down, Marjorie. Didn’t your mama teach you manners?’ He should not let any opportunity pass to throw a punch at the rude and the boorish.”
The ‘Three Johns’ Dole Out Favors
“Top contenders to replace Mitch McConnell (R-KY) as Senate GOP leader are working the phones with their colleagues — and lining up fundraisers and endorsements for potential new ones,” Axios reports.
“Leadership elections thrive on an economy of favors, endorsements and money. The three Johns will have to navigate a fractured GOP and high-stakes election, while avoiding the kind of leadership chaos seen in the House.”
Mullin Advises Trump to Stay Out of Leadership Race
Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) advised former President Trump to stay out of the leadership race to succeed Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), The Hill reports.
Said Mullin: “President Trump and I had a really good conversation last week. My advice to President Trump — which you know, President Trump’s his own man, he’s going to make it his decision, and he does a good job in that — is to kind of stay out of the race, because it’s a lose-lose situation.”
Climate Protester Slammed After Interrupting Manchin
An aide to Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) threw a climate action protester to the ground after he called the senator “a sick fuck” at the Harvard Institute of Politics, the Harvard Crimson reports.
Quote of the Day
“I have a long memory. If you’re fighting Trump and his endorsed candidates politically today, don’t ask for my help in a year with your legislation or your pet projects.”
— Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH), on X.
John Barrasso Mulls Run for Senate GOP Leader
“Sen. John Barrasso could throw his cowboy hat in the ring with the other Two Johns — Cornyn and Thune — for the Senate GOP’s top job. There’s a much easier path to promotion, though, as he wrestles with his decision,” Politico reports.
“The current No. 3 Senate Republican could eschew a run to succeed Mitch McConnell and instead pursue the party’s whip job this fall, elevating him to the No. 2 role, a leadership suite, security detail and being at the heart of Senate floor action every day.”
Bonus Quote of the Day
“I don’t know if most people in the country even know what party is in the Senate majority at times.”
— Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), in an interview with Brian Beutler.
Mastery, Destruction and Minority Rule
Josh Marshall: “Mitch McConnell is one of those perhaps historic figures for whom the greatness of his skill and impact are matched only in inverse by the malignity of his impact on our politics. To put it more brashly, McConnell was great at doing political evil.”
“There is now a kind of rearguard effort to remake McConnell as an institutionalist, a last vestige of the pre-Trumpian GOP. And on that last point, being a vestige, there’s some truth. On being an institutionalist, not at all.”
What Did Mitch McConnell Do to America?
Politico: “We asked congressional insiders, historians and political analysts to choose the longtime Senate GOP leader’s most consequential achievement as he prepares to step down.”
Cornyn Already Running Hard to Replace McConnell
Punchbowl News: “Cornyn, the first GOP senator to officially jump into the race to succeed Mitch McConnell, has been talking to any Republican with a pulse to try to gin up support for his bid to be Senate Republican leader. In fact, Cornyn’s call with Lake came as another potential McConnell successor, GOP Conference Chair John Barrasso, was out in Arizona campaigning for her.”
“Cornyn’s blitz includes nearly every member of his conference and the most important Republican in the country — former President Donald Trump.”
“The 72-year-old Cornyn, who’s been in the Senate since 2002, has been very aggressive out of the gate. Cornyn is relying heavily on moves he’s previously made on the fundraising front, including raking in money for GOP incumbents and candidates even before they ask for it.”
Katie Britt to Deliver GOP State of the Union Response
Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) will deliver the Republican response to President Biden’s State of the Union address on March 7, NBC News reports.
“She’s seen as a rising star in the Republican Party, and her name has been tossed around as a potential vice presidential pick.”
Trump Pushes Steve Daines to Run for Senate GOP Leader
“Donald Trump is encouraging Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) to run for GOP leader — a move that would significantly shake up the race to succeed Mitch McConnell later this year,” Politico reports.
“Daines currently helms Senate Republicans’ campaign arm. Daines indicated to Trump that he appreciates Trump’s encouragement but is focused on winning back the Senate majority this fall.”
Axios: “Much of the speculation about McConnell’s successor has focused on the ‘three Johns’ — Thune, Cornyn and Barrasso — but Trump’s involvement signals there could be a long race for the leadership post ahead.”
John Thune Soft Launches Bid for Senate GOP Leader
Sen. John Thune (R-SD) is “reaching out to each of his colleagues directly to discuss the future of the Senate Republican Conference and what they would like to see in their next leader,” Politico reports.
Cornyn Talked to Trump About Running for Senate Leader
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) told CNN he talked to Donald Trump about his “intention” to run for Senate GOP leader and “told him that I had worked with him when I was the Majority Whip for four years. And worked very successfully with him and his team, and I look forward to doing that again.”
Cornyn Will Run for Senate GOP Leader
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) said he will run to succeed Mitch McConnell as Republican leader, becoming the first to officially announce his candidacy for the job, Politico reports.
Mitch McConnell Surrenders to Trump
David Graham: “Dour, somber Mitch McConnell was gleeful, if such a thing can be imagined. Surveying the aftermath of the January 6 riot, the longtime Kentucky senator concluded that Donald Trump was finished.”
Said McConnell, to a reporter: “I feel exhilarated by the fact that this fellow finally, totally discredited himself. He put a gun to his head and pulled the trigger.”
“That was a little more than three years ago. Today, McConnell surrendered to Trump. The Republican leader announced that he will step down from his leadership post in November, meaning that if Trump wins the presidential election, as he currently seems favored to do, he’ll have a Senate Republican leader in place more ready to work with him.”
The Hill: McConnell exit surprises GOP: “It’s Trump’s party now.”
- « Previous Page
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- …
- 287
- Next Page »