GOP lawmakers pushback against McConnell appears to be a fault of his own, new analysis explains

16 September 2022

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has long had a reputation of being the legislative "grim reaper" but now it appears his hold over the Republican Party is beginning to wane.

A new analysis published by MSNBC News is shedding light on Republican lawmakers' recent pushback against McConnell. Although the Kentucky lawmaker previously had a reputation of being a stern leader among Republicans, it doesn't appear they will fall in line this time.

"McConnell appears to be a man who can no longer control the most extreme factions of his conference. He was perhaps the most prominent member of the conservative elite who enabled Trumpism, because he saw it as an avenue to pass tax cuts and confirm judges, but he himself has never been MAGA," Garcia wrote. "Now, he’s starting to pay the price for not having stood up to Trump earlier."

The latest controversy reportedly centers around Sen. Lindsey Graham's (R-S.C.) latest attack on abortion. MSNBC Opinion Columnist Eric Garcia offered a breakdown of the intraparty conflict currently brewing among Republican lawmakers.

"The decision of Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina to introduce legislation Tuesday that would ban abortion nationwide after 15 weeks of pregnancy and the decision of Sen. Marc Rubio of Florida the next day to join him shows that Republicans, to borrow from Blue Öyster Cult, don’t fear the reaper anymore," Garcia wrote. "If anything, Republicans are showing themselves to be more than willing to oppose the man who has led Republicans for almost 16 years."

However, Graham's proposal is one McConnell disagrees with. "McConnell quickly doused the idea of a national abortion ban, saying the issue should be left to the states, which was the same position Graham held a few weeks ago, when he said that 'states should decide the issue of abortion,'” he explained.

So why isn't McConnell in agreement? According to Garcia, the proposed piece of legislation could be a form of political suicide. "McConnell, whose sense of discipline contributed to Trump’s election as president and a 6-3 Supreme Court majority that overturned Roe v. Wade, recognizes that the bill would be political suicide.

To make matters worse, Garcia argues that Graham's timing is probably the worst. "Graham’s legislation couldn’t have come at a worse time for Republicans," he explained. "The midterms are less than two months away, and Democrats have been hammering Republicans on the issue since the Supreme Court replaced Roe v. Wade with Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization."

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