Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), no fan of tea party Republicans, doubled down on his distaste for those who support them, namely the Senate Conservatives Fund, saying they’re ”giving conservatism a bad name” and “participating in ruining the [Republican] brand.”
Sen. Mitch McConnell Says GOP Must Fight Against Republicans Giving Conservatism a Bad Name
In this Nov. 21, 2013, photo Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., joined by Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., left, speaks to reporters after the Democratic majority voted to weaken filibusters and make it harder for Republicans to block confirmation of the president’s nominees for judges and other top posts, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Image source: AP/J. Scott Applewhite)
“What they do is mislead their donors into believing the reason that we can’t get as good an outcome as we’d like to get is not because of a Democratic Senate and a Democratic president, but because Republicans are insufficiently committed to the cause — which is utter nonsense,” McConnell said in an interview with the Washington Examiner Friday.
McConnell is concerned that outfits such as the Senate Conservatives Fund are married to an in-your-face and uncompromising point of view that makes it difficult for the GOP to govern, the Examiner reported.
“There were people who were basically afraid of [conservatives], frankly,” McConnell said of fellow GOP lawmakers during the October government shutdown over Obamacare. “It’s time for people to stand up to this sort of thing.”
McConnell’s ire also may be related to the SCF backing a Republican primary challenger against him in 2014, which means McConnell must spend time and cash just to win his party’s nomination in Kentucky for his sixth term, the Examiner added.
Matt Hoskins, SCF’s executive director and sole decision maker, had harsh words for McConnell, saying he’ll pay a political price for opposing the SCF, which earns a lion’s share of its support from grassroots party members.
“Grassroots conservatives are very worried about the direction of the country and they believe urgent action is needed to save it,” Hoskins told the Examiner. “This is why they’re not happy with politicians who vote with them most of the time. They want people who will actually stand up and fight for them.”
For his part, McConnell said anti-establishment Republicans pose a threat to the wider “brand” of the GOP.
“To have the kind of year we ought to have in 2014, we have to have electable candidates on November ballots in every state — people that don’t scare the general electorate and can actually win, because winners make policy and losers go home,” McConnell said. “We can’t just turn the other cheek and hope for the best. It didn’t work in 2010 and 2012 so we’re going to try something different in 2014.”