Mitch McConnell Turns On Trump By Supporting Russia Election Meddling Investigation

Last updated on July 17th, 2023 at 09:40 pm

Senate Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) who was reported to have opposed a public statement on Russian election meddling in October, has turned on President-elect Donald Trump and now supports a bipartisan Senate investigation.
The Washington Post reported on December 9 that McConnell had opposed a joint public statement on Russian election interference before the election, “According to several officials, McConnell raised doubts about the underlying intelligence and made clear to the administration that he would consider any effort by the White House to challenge the Russians publicly an act of partisan politics.”
The behavior, as reported, seemed treasonous.

Cut to Mitch McConnell at a press conference on Monday morning:

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McConnell said:

That is quite a reversal from Friday to Monday, so what happened?

The Trump team’s immediate response calling the CIA liars pushed Republicans, like McConnell away from them, but the straw that may have broken the camel’s back came from Trump himself when during an interview on Fox News Sunday he called the CIA assessment ridiculous and claimed that Democrats were spreading the Russian election interference story as an excuse for losing the election.

Within hours of Trump speaking a bipartisan group of Senators called for an investigation, and the next morning, the Senate Majority Leader appears to have reversed course and announced his support for an investigation.

McConnell’s quick turn against Trump is proof that the president-elect doesn’t have many friends in the US Senate. If it becomes a matter of saving their own skins, Republicans like Mitch McConnell will throw Trump under the bus without blinking.

Make no mistake about it, Mitch McConnell supporting an investigation into Russian election meddling is terrible news for Donald Trump.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association