Politics
Mitch McConnell Announces Plans To Step Down From Senate Leader Position
Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell has announced his plans to step down from his position as Republican Senate Leader in November of 2024. This announcement comes after much speculation that McConnell has been in poor health over the last year.
McConnell has been the leader of the Senate Republicans since 2006, meaning that McConnell has led Republicans in the Senate for 18 years.
McConnell made this announcement today in the Senate, stating,
“One of life’s most underappreciated talents is to know when it’s time to move on to life’s next chapter, so I stand before you today … to say that this will be my last term as Republican leader of the Senate.””One of life’s most underappreciated talents is to know when it’s time to move on to life’s next chapter, so I stand before you today … to say that this will be my last term as Republican leader of the Senate.
Mitch Mcconnell on stepping down from party leadership
The Kentucky Senator also announced that he plans to serve out his full term as Senator, which is set to end in 2027, nearly three years away from his announcement that he is stepping down from his Senate leadership position.
“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. “That said, I believe more strongly than ever that America’s global leadership is essential to preserving the shining city on a hill that Ronald Reagan discussed. For as long as I am drawing breath on this earth I will defend American exceptionalism”
Mitch Mcconnell
McConnell’s announcement begs the question, who will step up in his absence to lead the Senate Republicans. John Thune, the South Dakota Senator, is a name that has been mentioned, as well as Tim Scott, the South Carolina Senator who dropped out of the Republican Presidential Primary race just months ago.
Federal campaign finance law would potentially allow Scott to transfer the remaining funds from his Presidential campaign account to his Senate leadership account with no restrictions, meaning that the Senator could be well-funded ahead of a potential push to become Republican Senate leader.
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