GOP strategist laments party dust-up: 'Two people that I like are fighting'

A Republican strategist and former staffer for Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) lamented on CNN infighting between President Donald Trump and the former Senate majority leader.

McConnell has repeatedly swiped at Trump in recent weeks, criticizing the president's isolationist foreign policy views and even opposing some of his Cabinet nominees.

In a column for the Courier-Journal, McConnell launched a full-scale attack on the president's plan to use tariffs to solve America's economic woes, with the longtime GOP leader claiming they will have the exact opposite effect.

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"No matter our best intentions, tariffs are bad policy," McConnell bluntly wrote, hours before he became the lone Republican senator to vote against the confirmation of former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard for director of national intelligence.

McConnell, who battled polio, also voted against Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a noted vaccine skeptic. McConnell's vote became the topic of a question Thursday from CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins, who pushed back on Trump's assertion that McConnell has opposed several Trump nominees despite endorsing him for president.

"He had polio, obviously," Collins replied.

"I don't know anything about 'he had polio.' He had polio," Trump repeated.

Earlier in the exchange, Trump said McConnell wanted to stay majority leader but "wasn't equipped mentally" and shouldn't have been in the position.

"He wasn't equipped 10 years ago mentally, in my opinion," said Trump. "He let the Republican Party go to hell. If I didn't come along the Republican Party wouldn't exist right now. Mitch McConnell never really had it."

Republican strategist Scott Jennings — an avowed supporter of Trump and McConnell, who previously served as McConnell's campaign manager – joined CNN anchor Anderson Cooper to discuss the recent dust-up between the two GOP giants.

"I don't love it," said Jennings. "I mean these guys obviously aren't friends and they're not going to be friends. They represent different wings of the Republican Party. I've been friends with Sen. McConnell since I was 17 years old. He's served the country well and served our nation. And he's obviously coming down to the end of his career here.

Jennings defended McConnell and said the senator cast his votes based on his "personal story" — not any "grudges" as Trump alleged.

Indeed, McConnell voted to put the nominations on the floor before opposing Kennedy — evidence he had no intent to "obstruct" Trump's cabinet.

"I don't love it when two people that I like are fighting, but my hope is that in the future they'll be able to work together on the big-ticket issues facing the country," he concluded.

Watch the clip below or at this link.