Mitch McConnell’s had quite an shock to the system, it seems. In the morning light after the Georgia Senate runoff elections, people were absolutely giddy to see him demoted to “Senate Minority Leader” when Rev. Raphael Warnock defeated incumbent Kelly Loeffler, and Jon Ossoff looked to have a certain victory over David Perdue. After Georgia actually turned blue for Biden during the presidential election, it’s now obvious that Trumpism has backfired upon the GOP, and some who have stayed loyal to Trump (or at least quiet about their misgivings) during his attempted coup to overturn the Electoral College vote have had enough.
Well, Mitch finally broke today. He did so after Mike Pence issued his own shocking statement that he would not try to block the Electoral College vote. As for Mitch, he looked to be on the verge of tears while condemning his GOP colleagues who continue to challenge state election results. McConnell declared that he would not join Ted Cruz and friends because the very soul of the republic is at stake:
“I’ve served 36 years in the Senate. This will be the most important vote I’ve ever cast. The voters, the courts and the states have all spoken. They’ve all spoken. If we overrule them, it will damage our republic forever… If this election was overturned by allegations from the losing side, our democracy would enter a death spiral.”
“It would be unfair and wrong to disenfranchise American voters and overrule the courts, and the states, on this extraordinarily thin basis,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says. pic.twitter.com/FwGdkNWbEu
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) January 6, 2021
McConnell then lambasted the conspiracy theories pushed, retweeted, and encouraged by Trump and somehow embraced by some GOP lawmakers. On one hand, people are agreeing with a lot of what Mitch is saying — and how he’s rising to the historical occasion and sounding statesman-like — but they also believe that he’s taken far too long to say it. After all, MAGA protesters (many of them armed) are currently storming the Capitol building following four years of McConnell going along with all of Trump’s dictator-like moves, and he’s only standing up to him after the Georgia runoffs finally had an effect on Mitch “Stimulus Shrinker” McConnell.
McConnell is rising to the historical occasion.
— Michael Beschloss (@BeschlossDC) January 6, 2021
McConnell should have drawn this line against Trump long ago.
— Michael Beschloss (@BeschlossDC) January 6, 2021
Mitch McConnell, welcome to the #Resistance
— Peter Hamby (@PeterHamby) January 6, 2021
I am not here for the tweets about McConnell rising to meet this historic moment while complete unlawful chaos unfolds outside the Senate chamber.
— Amanda Carpenter (@amandacarpenter) January 6, 2021
Mitch McConnell oozes dishonesty. That is all.
— Kyle Becker (@kylenabecker) January 6, 2021
mcconnell’s speech, in short pic.twitter.com/SOryc6BYLf
— b-boy bouiebaisse (@jbouie) January 6, 2021
Mitch McConnell has spent four years enabling Trump’s every move and willing fueles the election conspiracy theories because he thought they would help him win in Georgia.
Speaking out now is way too little too late. He has been far more destructive to democracy than Trump.
— Dan Pfeiffer (@danpfeiffer) January 6, 2021
Mitch McConnell’s lifelong ambition was to be Senate Majority Leader. How his tenure in that role ends: with the building literally under siege by supporters of his own party. https://t.co/3zQefTo4uY
— Alec MacGillis (@AlecMacGillis) January 6, 2021
The sort of rage you are seeing right now at the Capitol was deliberately harnessed and manipulated by Mitch McConnell and Republicans like Perdue and Loeffler for weeks because they thought it was necessary to win the Georgia runoffs.https://t.co/DMhIRv6cLC pic.twitter.com/TQWPcQq3do
— Greg Sargent (@ThePlumLineGS) January 6, 2021
As of this writing, the Capitol building remains under siege by Trump’s followers who are following his lead in attacking democracy. There’s more to come on this story for sure.