McConnell’s current term, his seventh consecutive, doesn’t expire until early 2027. However, when he returns in January for the new Congress, it will mark the first time since 2007 that he won’t be the ringleader of Senate Republicans.

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The job will be that of his successor, GOP Whip John Thune (R-SD).

“I’ve made it clear this year that our colleagues haven’t seen the last of me,” McConnell said from the Senate floor. “I still fully intend to keep frustrating my critics in the years ahead.”

With a nearly full chamber of senators listening from their seats, McConnell used his swan song to offer “a few observations I picked up along the way” of being a senator for almost four decades.

Bipartisanship, he emphasized, was the key to accomplishments in a bitterly divided town, particularly for a chamber that relies on basic across-the-aisle agreements to function and 60 votes for nearly all legislation.

“I’ve heard folks who like making a point they’d rather serve with 30 colleagues who all agreed than a majority who didn’t,” McConnell said. “So, if you want to accomplish absolutely nothing — nothing — sign up with the group.”

McConnell offered his colleagues on the other side of the Capitol some timely, albeit unsolicited, advice as House Republicans struggled to cobble together a last-minute funding agreement to stave off a midnight government shutdown. The House GOP torpedoed a bipartisan deal with Democrats on Thursday after 11th-hour opposition from President-elect Donald Trump and billionaire confidant Elon Musk.

“I don’t care to count how many times I’ve reminded our colleagues — and our House counterparts — how harmful it is to shut the government down and how foolish it is to bet that your own side won’t take the blame for it,” McConnell said. “Recent history doesn’t leave a whole lot of room for interpretation on that one: when you try to use normal government function as a bargaining chip, you pay a political price.”

He conceded it was “not entirely clear yet how or when Congress will conclude its end-of-year business.” However, he characterized the debacle as a telling episode of lawmakers’ motives for seeking elected office.

“Folks come to Washington to do one of two things: either to make a point or to make a difference,” McConnell said. “It’s usually not that hard to tell who’s doing which, especially in situations like the one we’re in right now.”

McConnell, 82, has not stated his 2026 reelection plans. He’s suffered several health episodes since 2023, the most recent being this month when he sustained a sprained wrist and scratched face after tripping and falling near the Senate chamber.

However, what is certain is his stated focus next Congress to counter growing isolationism in his party from global engagement, such as helping Ukraine defeat Russia.

“No one can do what we can internationally, and that’s where I’m going to put my focus. Thank you all for the opportunity,” McConnell concluded his speech.

McConnell was met with a standing ovation from senators in the room. Thune, followed by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), congratulated McConnell with handshakes.

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Senators from both parties lined up to offer their personal farewells, some offering McConnell a hug on what could be the chamber’s last working day of the 118th Congress.

“Everyone knows Leader McConnell and I had plenty of disagreements over the years on matters of policies and politics,” Schumer said. “But when the time was right, we found ways to work together, to get very important things done for this country.”