The Civil War on the Right: McConnell, Trump, the Midterms, and the Fight for the GOP
Rumors are swirling regarding Mitch McConnell sabotaging the GOP's Midterm chances as his battle with the MAGA Movement over control spills into public.
In an election year the arrival of October is the dawning of a new season. As the air turns crisp, the contests transform from slogs to sprints and the looming November meeting with destiny inspires frantic fear. Entire campaigns have been swamped in this four week marathon. Suddenly it’s not just fundraising and speeches at the Rotary. It’s making The Final Pitch and cementing your destiny.
This cycle finds a bizarre political landscape. Both the Democrats and Republicans sport fields littered with candidates who have failed to separate themselves from their opponents. Democratic candidates have seen a surge with the repeal of Roe V. Wade and the stink of Donald Trump’s legal troubles fouling up the political environment, but the contests remain largely toss-ups. Making matters worse, the GOP’s slate is a coterie of obnoxious personalities and unqualified spectacles, ranging from JD Vance and Ron Johnson to Mehmet Oz and Herschel Walker.
Meanwhile, it is an almost daily occurrence for new stories to appear in the media that hint at large dysfunction within the party.
Baffling legislative proposals that seem intent on harming Republicans at the polls.
And strange outbursts of party infighting that hint at something larger.
To understand what is happening with the Midterms and the Republican Party itself, it is necessary to begin parsing the ideological differences and opposing interests at play, and how those things are changing the party by the hour.
And it might help to find out why a source close to McConnell sent me the following message:
If they (Republicans) take back power they’ll be sworn in with bleeding backs and Mitch will be looking for a place to stash the knife.