Dem
47
GOP
53
As more and more contentious and probably illegal and/or unconstitutional items come before the Senate, some senators are looking at Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) for guidance. He is no longer the minority or majority leader of the Republican conference, but he has a lot of experience and despises Donald Trump. Those Republican senators who are at least a little bit concerned about what is best for the country may be interested in his views on things. Of course, there are increasingly few of those.
McConnell voted against Pete Hegseth for secretary of defense and has questioned the views of other nominees. He believes tariffs are bad policy and wants a robust defense budget, with plenty of military aid for Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan. He is clearly swimming upstream in the modern GOP though.
McConnell has become something of an institutional historian, telling newer members how things used to be. But for newer and Trumpier members, he is just a historical curiosity. He likes to wax philosophical, trying to impart some wisdom to his colleagues. Wisdom is in short supply in the Senate now, but there is also not so much demand either.
McConnell and Trump have had a testy relationship for years, in no small part on account of Trump saying racist things about McConnell's wife, Elaine Chao, who has served in multiple cabinets. But McConnell is generally liked by most Republican senators. One of them, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), even named his dog Mitch.
Yesterday, McConnell fell while leaving the Senate. Aides got him back on his feet. Then he fell again during the conference's lunch meeting. Later he moved around the Capitol in a wheelchair. This is just the most recent health problem he has had. We can't imagine him running for reelection in 2026. The sooner he announces this, the sooner the race to replace him can go public. Under the radar, it is already going on, of course. (V)