After being freed from his leadership role, McConnell is preparing to choose his own battles. The Senate’s longest-serving leader is stepping down in the upcoming Congress and intends to exert his influence in ways that may lead to conflicts with President-elect Donald J. Trump.
Mitch McConnell, who has been the Senate leader for the longest period of time, is stepping down from his position in the upcoming Congress. He is looking forward to using his power in ways that may lead to disagreements with President-elect Donald J. Trump.
Senator Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky and the Senate’s longest-serving leader, will be resigning from his position in January.
Backed by
Written by Catie Edmondson
Bringing news from the seat
When President Donald J. Trump was previously in the White House, Senator Mitch McConnell from Kentucky, who was the majority leader at the time, played a significant role in supporting him and helping to advance his priorities.
After serving as Senate leader for a long time, Mr. McConnell is resigning from the position in January. It seems that this time he is preparing to take a different approach, prioritizing issues that may lead to disagreements with Mr. Trump regarding policies and personnel at the beginning of his second term.
Recently, Mr. McConnell, who is 82 years old, has been expressing to his colleagues that stepping down from his leadership position has made him feel free and relieved. This was brought up during a late-night voting session on the Senate floor last week.
He has expressed doubt about some of the president-elect’s controversial choices for his administration, choosing not to comment on their appointments. Last week, he mentioned that it was the right decision for former Representative Matt Gaetz to withdraw from consideration as attorney general. Mr. McConnell has indicated that he will focus on two key issues during his remaining time in the Senate, which happen to be areas where he differs significantly from Mr. Trump.
Mitch McConnell, whose term expires in 2027 and has not confirmed if he will run again, has stated his intention to prioritize advancing his interventionist foreign policy over the next two years. This approach contradicts the incoming president’s "America First" stance. McConnell also aims to protect the Senate’s autonomy in the face of President Trump’s impending control over all branches of government.
We are experiencing difficulties accessing the content of the article.
Kindly activate JavaScript in the settings of your web browser.
We appreciate your understanding as we confirm your access. If you are currently in Reader mode, please exit and sign in to your Times account, or consider subscribing to access all of The Times’ content.
We appreciate your understanding as we confirm access.
Are you currently a member? Sign in to access the content
Interested in accessing all content from The Times? Sign up for a
Prom
Index of Pages
Navigation Information for the Site