Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) announced at a closed-door conference dinner Tuesday that he plans to challenge Mitch McConnell for Senate GOP leader, multiple people told Axios. Why it matters: The announcement came as Senate Republicans met to reflect on their underwhelming performance in the midterm elections, in which they failed to win enough seats to regain a majority in the House.
Scott McKinley Lewis’ spokesman and two other sources familiar with the announcement confirmed the plan to Axios. Scott, the Senate Republican campaign chairman and a member of the Senate Republican leadership, has been openly feuding with McConnell for months over differing strategies for the midterm elections. Scott is also one of several conservative senators who have asked McConnell to delay the GOP Senate leadership election until the Dec. 6 Georgia runoff.
Between the lines: Senate Republicans are looking for who to blame after missing a chance to regain power.
Despite the challenge, McConnell has repeatedly maintained that he is confident he has the votes to be re-elected as leader.
The Trump factor: Former President Trump, meanwhile, pushed Scott to run against McConnell and tried to make McConnell the fall guy for Republicans’ inability to regain the majority.
Trump, who plans to announce Tuesday night his plans to run for president in 2024, is expected to lean hard on his Senate allies to back Scott against McConnell.
Yes, but: Trump’s influence has waned significantly since last Tuesday’s election, with many top Republicans distancing themselves from the former president after several key Democratic candidates Trump picked lost. What he says: In a letter to his Senate Republican colleagues, Scott wrote:
“I am writing to you today because I believe it is time for the Senate Republican Conference to be much bolder and more decisive than we have been in the past. We need to start saying what we are for, not just what we are against.” “There is a Republican Party that is alive and well in communities across America. It’s time there was one in Washington, DC. That’s why I’m running to be Republican leader.”
Meanwhile, McConnell said Tuesday: “I think it’s pretty obvious that we may or may not vote tomorrow,” adding: “I have the votes. I’m going to be elected. The only question is whether we’re going to do it sooner or later.” The backdrop: Scott’s decision earlier this year to release a Republican agenda item containing new taxes angered McConnell, who quickly dismissed it publicly. The plan ultimately provided extensive offensive fodder that President Biden used to prop up his party.
McConnell, meanwhile, has long believed in focusing on Democrats’ shortcomings during the election and was opposed to drafting legislation before last week’s midterms. Scott is now using that decision as a key tenet of why he should become leader over McConnell.
Go deeper: Editor’s note: This story has been updated with a statement from Mitch McConnell.
