Donald Trump declined to say whether Senate Republicans should replace John Thune as their leader, telling reporters Monday that it’s “really up to the senators” and calling Thune a “very fine man,” according to The Gateway Pundit’s account of his remarks.
Trump: “I like John Thune”
“I know him very well, but that’s really up to the senators. I like John Thune,” Trump said, per The Gateway Pundit. He added that the Senate has struggled to move priorities, saying, “I wish they could get more produced,” and cited issues like voter ID and proof of citizenship.
Trump argued it is difficult to marshal votes: “First of all, you have 100% negative Democrats; they never vote yes; they always vote no. That means he has to get almost 100% of the Republicans, and you have some Republicans in there … that are very difficult.” He also said of Thune, “John’s a good man,” and noted he was unsure if a leadership vote would happen “tomorrow” or be delayed, saying he didn’t “know what the status” was, according to the outlet.
Push to delay leadership elections
The Gateway Pundit wrote that Senate Republicans were slated to hold a leadership election, while also reporting calls to postpone it. Dave McCormick said in a statement, “I don’t believe we should move to leadership elections until we have digested and debated the lessons of the midterms and how to move forward. We need leadership in place fast, but Tuesday is too soon.”
Separately, Sens. Ron Johnson (WI), Ted Budd (NC), Rick Scott (FL), Mike Lee (UT), and John Kennedy (LA) sent a letter to Thune urging Republicans to “have a fulsome conference discussion and delay holding leadership elections until we all have a chance to hear from leadership candidates … and what our strategy will be to counter the emboldened Democrats,” according to the same report.
Thune’s post-midterm message
The Gateway Pundit also reported that Thune said, “Republicans are ready to work with you,” in an address following the midterms. The outlet characterized last Tuesday’s results as a “bloodbath” and said Republicans lost House and Senate majorities.
