Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has officially endorsed Donald Trump as president. McConnell’s announcement strengthens Trump’s backing from top GOP members of Congress as he prepares for a rematch with President Joe Biden in November.
However, the endorsement comes after years of tension between McConnell and Trump, dating back to Trump’s tenure in the Oval Office. Despite their policy achievements together, their relationship has been filled with public clashes and personal animosity. Their relationship got worse after the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. McConnell voted to acquit Trump in his impeachment trial related to the Capitol riot.
But in a speech, he blamed Trump for the mob attack. “There’s no question that President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the day’s events. No question about it,” McConnell said on the Senate floor after Trump was acquitted in the Senate trial. “The people who stormed this building believed they were acting on the wishes and instructions of their president.”
As a result of McConnell’s statement, the two men didn’t speak for about three years. Recently, McConnell and his allies clashed with Trump’s supporters over providing more aid to Ukraine, a stance McConnell backs. Also, Trump made racist remarks about McConnell’s wife, Elaine Chao, who worked as the transportation secretary when Trump was president.
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However, McConnell’s choice to support Trump wasn’t surprising. A month after the trial, McConnell told Fox News that he would “absolutely” support Trump if he ran as the Republican presidential nominee in 2024.
“It is abundantly clear that former President Trump has earned the requisite support of Republican voters to be our nominee for President of the United States,” McConnell said in a statement. “It should come as no surprise that as a nominee, he will have my support,” said McConnell, who announced last week that he would step down from his Senate leadership position.
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McConnell had never mentioned if he intended to support Trump until now. When asked repeatedly if he’d support Trump, McConnell never gave a clear answer. Instead, he said he would support whoever the party picked as their candidate. But apparently, the high-profile Republican has made his decision.
McConnell endorsed Trump immediately after Nikki Haley, the former U.N. Ambassador, suspended her campaign to run for president. In his statement on Wednesday, he pointed out the “important achievements” he and Trump made while Trump was president. This included changing the federal courts and picking three conservative judges for the Supreme Court.
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“During his presidency, we worked together to accomplish great things for the American people, including tax reform that supercharged our economy and a generational change in our federal judiciary, most importantly, the Supreme Court,” he said.
“I look forward to the opportunity of switching from playing defense against the terrible policies the Biden administration has pursued to a sustained offense geared towards making a real difference in improving the lives of the American people,” he added.
However, McConnell is not the only Senate leader to endorse Trump. On Wednesday, Senator Joni Ernst of Iowa, who leads the Senate Republican Policy Committee, endorsed Trump. “We must beat Joe Biden and get this country back on track. Donald Trump has my support,” Ernst tweeted.
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