Mitch McConnell’s historic run as a Senate leader will soon expire, and his tenure is set to end with another break with former President Donald Trump.
While speaking to reporters on Capitol Hill, the Republican senator from Kentucky was asked about a possible six-month continuing resolution (CR) to fund the behemoth known as the federal government.
On that note, Trump declared last week that if the bill does not include measures to protect the upcoming election the GOP should “close it down,” meaning a government shutdown.
“I think we first have to wait and see what the House sends us. My only observation about this whole discussion is the one thing you cannot have is a government shutdown. It would be politically beyond stupid for us to do that right before the election because certainly, we’d get the blame,” McConnell said on Monday.
.@LeaderMcConnell: “The one you cannot have is a government shutdown. It would be politically stupid for us to do that right before the election because we’d certainly get the blame.” pic.twitter.com/Al0yD8ztLM
— CSPAN (@cspan) September 17, 2024
“And one of my favorite old sayings is there’s no education in a second kick of a mule. We’ve been here before,” he added. “I’m for whatever avoids the government shutdown and that’ll ultimately end up obviously being a discussion between the Democratic leader and the speaker of the House as to how to process avoiding government shutdown.”
While the remark may not be an accurate gauge of the appetite of many Republican voters, it reflects McConnell’s experience over the years when it comes to the media’s reaction to a possible shutdown — not to mention the GOP’s lack of a stomach for a fight.
Ironically, the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) is currently pushing a petition on voter integrity in an ad designed to gather contact information to solicit donations.
Please DO NOT ignore- Democrats election scheme uncovered:
— Senate Republicans (@NRSC) August 12, 2024
On Friday, House Republicans rolled out a stopgap bill to extend current government funding rates into the first quarter of next year, according to Roll Call. The bill includes proof-of-citizenship requirements that will meet strong opposition in the Democratic-controlled Senate.
“Today, House Republicans are taking a critically important step to keep the federal government funded and to secure our federal election process,” Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said in a statement. “Congress has a responsibility to do both, and we must ensure that only American citizens can decide American elections.”
Trump let his thoughts on the matter be known last week on Truth Social: “If Republicans in the House, and Senate, don’t get absolute assurances on Election Security, THEY SHOULD, IN NO WAY, SHAPE, OR FORM, GO FORWARD WITH A CONTINUING RESOLUTION ON THE BUDGET. THE DEMOCRATS ARE TRYING TO “STUFF” VOTER REGISTRATIONS WITH ILLEGAL ALIENS. DON’T LET IT HAPPEN – CLOSE IT DOWN!!!”
As for the aforementioned “appetite,” which may or may not be politically expedient, here’s a sampling of responses to the story, as seen on X:
You get the blame for everything else anyway big deal.. the only ones benefiting from government now are immigrants so a shutdown wouldn’t be noticed by the ones already down and struggling ♀️
— LeahRae (@Leah177704101) September 17, 2024
Maybe it’s better than the bad decisions they continually make. We could use a break from the mess they are making.
— Ronnie Mack (@RonnieCloses) September 17, 2024
Only Americans should be allowed to vote-
Shut it down!— Jane (@JaneLydiaB) September 17, 2024
Why would republicans be to blame?
Majority of Americans, including democrats and independents, want US verification prior to voter registration as well as voter ID to vote.
Stop cowering.
They are the radicals.— Ms. Deplorable (@MsDeplorable2) September 17, 2024
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Tom Tillison grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills. Tillison also contributes to BizPac Review.
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