Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) hosted a string of GOP Senate hopefuls at a rally Friday, a week after he made a comment about current GOP Senate candidates lacking “quality.”
Georgia candidate Herschel Walker, Pennsylvania hopeful Dr. Mehmet Oz, and Rep. Ted Budd (NC), attended the event in Louisville, Kentucky, which was first organized in June, according to ABC News. McConnell alluded to the difficulty the GOP will have winning certain races, a concern frequently expressed about Oz and Walker.
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“I think there’s probably a greater likelihood the House flips than the Senate. Senate races are just different,” McConnell said at a Kentucky luncheon last week. “Candidate quality has a lot to do with the outcome.”
The comments were rebuked by others on the Right, including former President Donald Trump and Fox News host Sean Hannity, who claimed McConnell was going to leave the candidates “out to dry.”
“Mitch McConnell is not an Opposition Leader, he is a pawn for the Democrats to get whatever they want. He is afraid of them, and will not do what has to be done,” Trump said. “A new Republican Leader in the Senate should be picked immediately!”
Despite the condemnations, a super PAC linked to McConnell, the Senate Leadership Fund, has reserved $34.1 million in Pennsylvania, $37 million in Georgia, and $27.6 million in North Carolina to support the aforementioned nominees, according to ABC.
“The stakes in this election could not be higher. It is imperative that Republicans regain control of the Senate and serve as a firewall against President Biden’s disastrous policies. I am determined to do everything I can to ensure our candidates have the resources they need to win this November,” said McConnell.
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All three candidates are facing tough races against their Democratic opponents, according to FiveThirtyEight. Sen. Raphael Warnock leads Walker 46.2% to 44.4%. Oz trails Lt. Gov. John Fetterman by 9 points, and North Carolina’s Cheri Beasley is in a statistical dead heat with Budd.
Oz, who was endorsed by Trump in April, will be holding a rally with the former president next weekend in Pennsylvania, alongside the state’s GOP gubernatorial candidate, Doug Mastriano.
