Should Mitch McConnell retire? Everyone is different; Trump is no spring chicken, but the man is still sharp and animated and works like an ox. As Bill Maher said, Trump is like KISS: he may be 78, but if he puts the wig and makeup on, he still sounds like he did back in 1978. Yet, it goes beyond age and the series of medical episodes that have plagued the Kentucky Republican. He’s no longer a real leader of Senate Republicans anymore. You saw that in the fights to confirm Trump’s nominees.
In a shocking move, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), a thorn in the side of the GOP, voted to confirm Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Health and Human Services secretary and Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence. Both had some rockiness toward their nominations, but nothing serious. In retrospect, even Pete Hegseth’s hearing for Secretary of Defense wasn’t that contentious, given the political climate around Donald Trump. Even Susan Collins (R-ME), another wildcard, voted for Gabbard and Kennedy. All three voted against Hegseth, but the point is that in the top three battles on Trump’s nominations, McConnell lost on all of them.
TRUMP ON MCCONNELL: "I feel sorry for Mitch...He's not equipped mentally...He let the Republican party go to hell."
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) February 13, 2025
"He's not voting against [RFK Jr.], he's voting against me, but that's alright." pic.twitter.com/CySoW9EGaN
Is that a sign that he’s truly a leader of the GOP? He’s not the official Senate leader, passing the torch to Sen. John Thune (R-SD), but look at other Senators. The late Harry Reid had an iron grip on his caucus. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), more or less, is the same with Senate Democrats right now. It’s a sign that the times are a changing,’ and maybe McConnell should wrap it up and resign.
No one fears him; he’s just there to cast votes against the second Trump presidency, and he’s fallen God knows how many times. The man needs a wheelchair to scoot around the Hill. President Trump also decided to take a shot at this wounded political creature, saying he felt sorry for Mitch.
“He’s not equipped mentally. He wasn’t equipped ten years ago, mentally in my opinion. He let the Republican Party go to hell. If I didn’t come along, the Republican Party wouldn’t even exist right now,” said Trump. “He's not voting against Bobby; he's voting against me, but that's alright.”
He, too, said that he’s not even on the ‘ins’ with the current state of the party, and he’s lost his power, and it’s affected his vote.
“It’s one of those things,” said Trump.
Okay, maybe he shouldn’t resign because calling for that is a classic lib move regarding people they don’t like, but I’d hope he doesn’t consider re-election and retire. Knowing Mitch, he’ll stay mum for a while, so now comes the work of finding someone to match up for a potential primary because this cannot go on.
Mitch McConnell should be remembered for passing the Trump tax cuts and overhauling the judiciary during Trump’s first presidency. He did do some good things. He was one of the best tacticians we had on the Hill. He moved what he could after the 2016 election, but that’s over.
Hang it up, sir. Don’t go the way of Guns N’ Roses. Leave the stage with some dignity, though these votes have also put a damper on that.