“Inside McConnell’s handling of Trump’s election challenge”

Politico:

Mitch McConnell explicitly warned Senate Republicans not to challenge Joe Biden’s presidential win. But now that a dozen of his members are going there, the GOP leader is taking his thumb off the scale.

The Kentucky Republican actively sought to avoid a divisive circus over the election results, making his position well-known throughout the GOP conference. Yet senators and aides say he is not actively whipping his members to side against Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who are leading the electoral objections in the Senate. Instead, he’s offering guidance when it’s sought, fielding calls from at least half the Senate GOP conference, according to a source familiar with the matter.

McConnell told senators on a recent conference call that “this is a very difficult decision for each one of you, you each have to make it yourselves,” recounted Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.). “‘I’ve voted twice on declarations of war.’ And he said, ‘this is right up there.’ But … there’s a lot of noise out there and I won’t judge anybody for their decision.’”

It’s the latest and highest-profile example of the GOP leader’s subtle-post election effort to lead the party as President Donald Trump fractures Republicans. Tuesday’s Georgia run-off faces will determine whether McConnell is majority leader for two more years and may be as much a referendum on his moves over the past few weeks as they are on Trump’s erratic fight against the election results.

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