McConnell to step down as Senate Republican leader at end of year
WASHINGTON — Top US Senate Republican Mitch McConnell said on Wednesday he will step down this year from his leadership role, ending a record-setting tenure.
McConnell, who has represented Kentucky in the Senate since 1985 and has been his party’s leader since 2007, gleefully embraced the nickname “Grim Reaper” for his willingness to use the levers of power to stonewall Democratic goals, whether as majority leader or, as is currently the case, minority leader.
“I turned 82 last week. The end of my contributions are closer than I prefer,” McConnell said on the Senate floor, his voice breaking with emotion.
“Father Time remains undefeated. I’m no longer the young man sitting in the back hoping colleagues remember my name. It’s time for the next generation of leadership.”
His tenure of nearly 17 years as a Senate party leader is the longest on record.
A leadership transition is set to take place in November when an election will be held to choose his replacement. The newly elected leader will assume office in January.
McConnell is seen by fellow lawmakers as a skilled strategist in politics and one of the most powerful figures in Washington. Collaborating with then-president Donald Trump, McConnell played a pivotal role in passing a comprehensive $1.5 trillion tax cut bill in 2017.
However, McConnell’s once significant sway over the Senate GOP has waned in the past year as the party increasingly aligns itself with Trump, who maintains a notably strained relationship with the Republican leader.
The rift between Trump and McConnell was exacerbated by the events of the Capitol riot on Jan 6, 2021. Despite voting to acquit Trump in the subsequent impeachment trial, McConnell asserted that the former president bore substantial moral responsibility for inciting the events of that day.
John Thune, the No 2 Senate Republican, John Cornyn and John Barrasso were expected to vie for the top party job.
It was unclear what other senators might jump into the race.
Meanwhile, Congressional leaders announced on Wednesday they have reached a tentative agreement to prevent a government shutdown for now, days before an end-of-theweek deadline that risked shuttering some federal operations.
Temporary funding
Under the new plan, Congress would temporarily fund one set of federal agencies through March 8 and another set through March 22.
In the meantime, Congress will try to draft and pass packages of legislation to fund the government for the remainder of the budget year.
“We are in agreement that Congress must work in a bipartisan manner to fund our government,” said the joint statement from House Speaker Mike Johnson, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senate Republican Leader McConnell and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, along with the Appropriations Committee leaders.
Johnson said the House would vote on Thursday to approve the temporary funds — ahead of Friday’s deadline — when some federal monies run out. The Senate would be expected to vote next.
The deal comes together as negotiators in Congress have been working to finish up a federal spending plan while Washington joined Ukraine and other US allies around the world in watching and waiting for Johnson’s next move.
“As the President and Congressional Leaders made clear at yesterday’s meeting, we cannot allow a government shutdown,” White House press secretary Karine JeanPierre said in a statement. She said the agreement reached would help prevent a “needless” federal shutdown.
Congress is in what has become a familiar cycle of threatened shutdowns and disruptions as hardright Republicans in Johnson’s majority strive for steeper spending reductions than Democrats and even some other Republicans are willing to accept. This would be the fourth short-term funding extension in about five months.