Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) has advised former President Trump to refrain from participating in the race to succeed Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).
McConnell made the announcement last week that he would be resigning from his position as head of Senate Republicans next November, a decision that caught many members of his own party off guard. Now, Senate Republicans are considering potential successors as three potential candidates have emerged: Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.), John Cornyn (R-Texas) and John Barrasso (R-Wyo.). Mullin, a member of Thune’s whip team, has already expressed his support for the South Dakota Republican. When asked on CNN’s “State of the Union” whether he was concerned that Trump would try to undermine Thune’s bid, Mullin mentioned that he was unsure but encouraged Trump to avoid getting involved in the competition.
“I'm not sure. President Trump and I had a very good discussion last week. My advice to President Trump—which you know, President Trump makes his own decisions and is good at it—is to stay out of the contest because it’s a no-win situation,” he stated.
“He should cooperate with whichever leader is there, and let me tell you, any leader there understands that they will also have to work with President Trump. So, it's really not beneficial for him to intervene in the race at this point. However, if he decides to do so, it will have an impact,” he noted.
Thune has previously criticized Trump but
backed him for the presidency just before McConnell’s announcement. Trump mentioned after the news came out that there were “a lot of good choices” to replace McConnell. Mullin reiterated his support for Thune in his Sunday interview.
“And I’ve observed his leadership skills in action, even when Mitch was unable to be at the Capitol due to illness. I witnessed him step up in a very effective way. And what I seek in any individual vying for a leadership position is someone who can lead during very perilous and critical times, and that’s what I witnessed John Thune do,” he added.
Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) advised former President Trump to stay out of the battle for the leadership position after McConnell announced his intention to step down from leading Senate Republicans, which caught many members of his own party by surprise. Now, Senate Republicans are discussing…
