One of the few elements of the Republican Party that has been slow to get behind another term for former President Donald Trump is in the Senate, where Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has become a constant target of anger for the former president, despite all he did to further his policy when he was last in office.
And yet, according to Politico, many Senate Republicans are beginning to fall in line behind Trump, as they accept the reality that he is all but the presumptive nominee already.
Trump, per reporter Burgess Everett, "won five endorsements from Republican senators during December alone, after snagging just three of them over the preceding four months. So far, Trump’s secured 18 endorsements from the Senate GOP, a group that ranges from establishment-minded Republicans to confrontational conservatives who will be vocal allies if he wins another term."
Moreover, Trump has called Rep. John Hoeven (R-ND) and pressured him for an endorsement. Hoeven had previously endorsed Doug Burgum, the governor of his own state, but Burgum has since dropped out of the primary.
Trump's animosity toward McConnell dates back to the aftermath of the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, when McConnell condemned the former president's actions in helping to incite the incident — although McConnell ultimately declined to vote for conviction at Trump's impeachment trial, saying instead that the criminal justice system should handle the issue.
Trump continues to face opposition from a handful of challengers, chiefly Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy. However, all of them lag far behind Trump in polls, and many face serious campaign problems, with DeSantis attacking his own super PAC, and Ramaswamy ceasing to advertise in early states.
