'It's helping us!' GOP senator praises Kyrsten Sinema for making Mark Kelly look bad to swing voters

On Tuesday, National Republican Senatorial Committee Chair Rick Scott (R-FL) told reporters he is hopeful that Arizona voters will dump Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) in 2022 — because he votes with the Democratic Party line more often than fellow Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ).

"Mark Kelly's getting defined every day because he's so different than Sinema," said Scott. "[He] does whatever Schumer tells him to do. So yeah, I think it's helping us."

Kelly, a former astronaut who defeated GOP Sen. Martha McSally after she was appointed to fill the remainder of the late Sen. John McCain's term, is actually slightly more popular with Arizona voters than Sinema, according to recent polling — and is leading all Republican hopefuls in head-to-head matchups.

Sinema, who has recently garnered national headlines for fighting to bargain down the size of President Joe Biden's landmark Build Back Better Act, relies on cross-party support for her favorability ratings and has is trailing hypothetical primary polls for her race in 2024.

Among the GOP candidates challenging Kelly include current Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich, who led recent litigation weakening voting rights at the Supreme Court and recently garnered headlines for filming himself brandishing nunchucks; and Blake Masters, a Silicon Valley investor with backing from pro-Trump tech tycoon Peter Thiel.