McConnell resigns: the last bastion of the anti-Trump Republicans falls in Washington. Former head of government of the Soviet Union dies

When Donald Trump was recently asked what he thought of his party colleague Mitch McConnell, the Republican presidential candidate said: “I don’t know if I can work with him.” McConnell, leader of the Republican faction in the Senate since 2007, has allowed himself to be deceived far too often by the Democrats. McConnell recently voted for a new aid package for Ukraine, even though a majority of his group opposed it.

Now it is clear that when Trump reenters the White House next January, he will be able to ignore McConnell. Because on Wednesday the 82-year-old senator from Kentucky announced his retirement as party leader. In a surprisingly planned speech, the Republican said that after the next general election in November, the time had come for a generational change.

Role model Reagan, obstruction against Obama

McConnell didn’t say a word about Trump, whom he reportedly hasn’t spoken to directly in more than three years. Instead, the Republican, who was first elected senator in 1984 and is in his seventh term, repeatedly mentioned his great political role model Ronald Reagan.

That was no coincidence, because the gifted political tactician McConnell leaves nothing to chance. (Or at least gave his political opponent the impression that he was leaving nothing to chance.) Perhaps for the last time, McConnell was recalling the ideals of the old Republican Party, which steered a more conservative course, especially in the area of safety policy. Most recently, the senator seemed proud that the Senate was the last bastion of power standing in the way of Trump’s Republican course correction.

Of course, that doesn’t mean McConnell was a friend of the Democrats. Many left-wing senators will never forgive him for his obstructionism during Barack Obama’s presidency. In 2016, he blocked the appointment of a new judge to the Supreme Court, breaking parliamentary traditions.

‘The three Johns’ want to inherit McConnell

But his successor will be even more angular in his politicization, there is no doubt about that in Washington. Senators John Thune, 63, of South Dakota, McConnell’s deputy since 2019, and John Barrasso, 71, of Wyoming, are said to have ambitions in the capital. Barrasso is number 3 in the faction leadership.

John Cornyn, 72, of Texas is also said to be in the running. Cornyn served as McConnell’s deputy from 2013 to 2019. (Thune, Barrasso and Cornyn are often referred to in Washington as “the three Johns.”) Rick Scott, 71, of Florida, who challenged McConnell after the 2022 election, is also likely to be a candidate.

What all four candidates have in common is that they are close to Trump and have made an election call in favor of the ex-president and presidential candidate. McConnell, on the other hand, has not yet commented on the 2024 election, although rumors of an “endorsement” are circulating in Washington. However, due to the complicated relationship between the two politicians – Trump has also repeatedly and sharply attacked McConnell’s wife, former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, in recent years – this election call has not yet been published. (aargauerzeitung.ch)