Republicans need to rebrand and “build something new” after they failed to retake a majority in the U.S. Senate or meet general expectations for the 2022 midterm elections, one of the party’s younger members said.
On Saturday, shortly after Democrats picked up a key victory in Nevada, where incumbent Democrat Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto defeated Republican challenger Adam Laxalt, Republican Sen. Josh Hawley took to Twitter to say the Republican Party “is dead.”
“The old party is dead. Time to bury it. Build something new,” Hawley wrote.
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Miissouri, with Sen. Rick Scott, R-Florida, Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wisconsin. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
The 42-year-old Missouri Republican is among a younger group of Senate Republicans, who have expressed reservations for or straight opposition to current Republican Senate Leader Mitch McConnell, 82.
Hawley has been vocally critical of the Republican Party after they failed to win in Pennsylvania, where Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz fell short of defeating Senator-elect John Fetterman, and in Arizona, where Sen. Mark Kelly fended off Republican hopeful Blake Masters.
“You can’t expect independent voters to vote Republican unless you give them an agenda they care about,” Hawley added in a tweet on Friday.
The day before, Hawley said the Republican machine “lost big” in the midterms and said their legislative priorities were not being supported by the American people.
“Washington Republicanism lost big Tuesday night. When your ‘agenda’ is cave to Big Pharma on insulin, cave to Schumer on gun control & Green New Deal (‘infrastructure’), and tease changes to Social Security and Medicare, you lose,” he wrote.
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, speaks during a Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
He also suggested Republicans failed to present their own ideas and initiatives to voters and only pointed to failures of the Democratic Party.
“Not enough to say the other side is no good. Have to offer an actual agenda,” he wrote.
Hawley was also among a group of Republicans, joined by Sens. Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Rick Scott, and Cynthia Lummis, who urged the Senate to postpone its leadership election until after the Georgia runoff election with Republican Hershall Walker and Democrat Raphael Warnock.
“The Senate GOP leadership vote next week should be postponed,” Rubio tweeted.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky, walks to the Senate floor at the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
He added: “First we need to make sure that those who want to lead us are genuinely committed to fighting for the priorities & values of the working Americans (of every background) who gave us big wins in states like Florida.”
Hawley agreed.
SENATE GOP WON’T MOVE LEADERSHIP ELECTIONS DESPITE CALLS FOR DELAY
“Exactly right. I don’t know why Senate GOP would hold a leadership vote for the next Congress before this election is finished. We have a runoff in #GASenate – are they saying that doesn’t matter? Don’t disenfranchise,” he wrote.
Several other Republicans, notably including former President Donald Trump have expressed frustration with McConnell following Tuesday’s election results.
“He is the WORST!” Trump wrote on social media.
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Despite calls for a postponement, a Senate GOP aide confirmed to Fox News Digital that the leadership elections will go on as planned.
