Rick Scott Announces Bid To Oust McConnell As Senate GOP Leader

Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) has announced a bid to oust Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) as the Republican Leader of the Senate after the midterm elections.

Scott made the announcement in a note to his Republican colleagues on Tuesday that was sent to The Daily Wire by Scott’s office. It was initially obtained by Fox News Digital.

In the note, which was published by Fox News Digital, Scott tells his colleagues that he believes “it’s time for the Senate Republican Conference to be far more bold and resolute than we have been in the past. We must start saying what we are for, not just what we are against.”

While he believes the Democrats are “radical,” Scott says Republicans cannot “simply continue to say” so.

“Republican voters expect and deserve to know our plan to promote and advance conservative values. We need to listen to their calls for action and start governing in Washington like we campaign back at home,” he added.

Scott added that he was “deeply disappointed” by the midterm election results, and “[d]espite what the armchair quarterbacks on TV will tell you, there is no one person responsible for our party’s performance across the country.”

While he said that the main issue in elections across the country was low turnout of Republican voters, he also thinks “voters want a plan.”

“They are begging us to tell them what we will do when we are in charge. Unfortunately, we have continued to elect leadership who refuses to do that and elicits attacks on anyone that does. That is clearly not working and it’s time for bold change. The voters are demanding it,” he added. 

“If you simply want to stick with the status quo, don’t vote for me,” he noted.

Scott is chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee and has differed with McConnell over political approaches throughout the past year.

A New York Times report from September detailed the drama surrounding the campaign arm of the Senate GOP, led by Scott, who decided to change how the organization raised funds over the internet. The committee brought in a record amount of money, but then spent over 95% of what it had raised. The Times found that Scott’s attempt to raise money online didn’t pay off.

McConnell is also the source of some controversy regarding fundraising. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) said this week that it was “indefensible” for the McConnell-backed Senate Leadership Fund to pull $9.6 million in television ads from the Arizona Senate election.

“Because Masters said he would vote against Mitch McConnell. And so Mitch would rather be leader than have a Republican majority. If there’s a Republican who can win who’s not going to support Mitch, the truth of the matter is he’d rather the Democrat win,” Cruz said.

Other conservative senators have pushed to have McConnell postpone the Senate Republican leadership elections until the Georgia Senate runoff election is over.

The Daily Wire has reached out to Senator McConnell and Senator Scott’s offices for comment.

*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases