He plans to not seek another term after the longest Republican leadership stint in chamber history.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell announced on Wednesday that he will not run for another term as leader, ending a record-setting run atop the GOP conference.
The Kentucky Republican has served as party leader since 2007, the longest stint in Senate history. He indicated that he plans to serve out the rest of his Senate term, which expires in 2026.
“I’m no longer the young man sitting in the back hoping colleagues would remember my name. It’s time for the next generation of leadership,” McConnell said.
McConnell announced his intentions at an incredibly tense time for both himself and his party: He’s trying to send billions of dollars more to Ukraine to fend off Russia and is confronting the likelihood that his party nominates former President Donald Trump, whom McConnell has not spoken to for years. On Tuesday alone, he faced three tough moments: nudging Speaker Mike Johnson to pass the Senate’s $95 billion foreign aid bill, dodging a question about when he would endorse Trump and committing to avoiding a government shutdown.
“Believe me, I know the politics within my party at this particular moment in time. I have many faults. Misunderstanding politics is not one of them,” McConnell said — an acknowledgment of his party’s huge divisions over foreign policy and Trump.
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Mitch McConnell is set to announce today that he won't run for another term as Senate GOP leader, ending a record-setting run atop the Republican conference.https://t.co/5lhq0dCJuq
— POLITICO (@politico) February 28, 2024
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell is stepping down from his leadership post in November, ending his history-setting tenure as longest serving Senate party leader.
McConnell, who turned 82 this month, announced the decision in a speech on the Senate floor.
McConnell said… pic.twitter.com/lblHcneK0e
— The Hill (@thehill) February 28, 2024
Mitch McConnell has been the most successful and consequential conservative legislative leader in our lifetimes. Was he perfect or immune from criticism? Of course not. But most of his populist enemies routinely engage in ahistorical fan-fiction in their indictments.
— Jonah Goldberg (@JonahDispatch) February 28, 2024
President Biden says he and McConnell could "always speak with each other honestly and put the country ahead of ourselves."
"I’m proud that my friend Mitch McConnell and I have been able to do that for many years, working together in good faith even though we have many political…
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) February 28, 2024
House Freedom Caucus mocks Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell as (D-Ukraine) after retirement news https://t.co/OyyvU4LNbp pic.twitter.com/zHljLWr9Nd
— The Hill (@thehill) February 28, 2024
Mitch McConnell has done more to advance conservatism and fight left-wing extremism than any politician over the last 5 decades. And it's not particularly close.
This is particularly absurd coming from a group of clowns that have handed Dems one win after the next. https://t.co/QJvFp2Htdf
— AG (@AGHamilton29) February 29, 2024
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