'Blind spot': McConnell leaving 2 GOP senators to 'fight for' themselves in tight races

27 September 2024

With three-term incumbent Sen. Jon Tester struggling in Montana's 2024 U.S. Senate race and the seat held by Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin (who isn't seeking reelection in West Virginia) almost certain to go Republican, Democratic strategists and organizers are hoping to save their Senate majority by unseating Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and/or Sen. Rick Scott (R-Florida). But according to The Hill's Alexander Bolton, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) is in no hurry to help Cruz or Scott out.

Republicans have enjoyed an advantage in Texas, where Republicans typically won statewide races by double digits during the 2000s, and Florida. But those states' 2024 Senate races, according to polls, have been surprisingly close. A Morning Consult poll released on September 21 showed Cruz's Democratic challenger, Rep. Colin Allred, ahead by 1 percent — although an Emerson College/The Hill poll released a few days later showed Allred trailing Cruz by 4 percent.

Meanwhile, in Florida, an Emerson College/The Hill poll showed Scott leading Democratic challenger Debbie Mucarsel-Powell leading by only 1 percent.

Bolton, in an article published on September 27, reports that the McConnell-associated Senate Leadership Fund (SLF) "isn't helping two of McConnell's biggest critics in the Senate GOP conference": Cruz and Scott.

"This has prompted grumbling from conservatives who say McConnell has too much power over Senate Republican fundraising and point out that Cruz, in particular, a longtime McConnell critic, will be heavily outspent by his Democratic opponent, Texas Rep. Colin Allred, and his allies," Bolton explains. "Some Republican strategists are also questioning whether the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), which is run by Chair Steve Daines (Mont.), a member of McConnell's leadership team, is doing enough to protect incumbents like Cruz and Scott."

Bolton adds, "This election cycle, the NRSC has focused like a laser beam on knocking off vulnerable Democrats such as Sens. Jon Tester (Mont.) and Sherrod Brown (Ohio), but now, Democrats are shifting money to Texas and Florida to put pressure on Cruz and Scott."

SLF President Steven Law said of Cruz and Scott, "If it gets tough, we'll be there for them."

But a conservative strategist, interviewed on condition of anonymity, told The Hill, "It's been well-known for over a decade, that since SLF has started, that McConnell has used it to reward his allies and punish conservatives. And it's never been more apparent than this year, when two of the strongest allies of President Trump, Sen. Rick Scott and Sen. Ted Cruz, are being left to fight for their reelection on their own."

A different conservative strategist, also quoted anonymously, told The Hill, "I've seen some of the public polling in Texas. I think that race could be close. Certainly, Allred has raised and spent a lot of money. The NRSC has spent some in Texas. SLF hasn't and probably doesn't intend to. The blind spot that the NRSC has toward incumbents is a big problem."

Read Alexander Bolton's full report for The Hill at this link.

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