Trump Calls for New GOP Senate Leadership, Suggests Replacement for Mitch McConnell
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Oliver Contreras/Bloomberg via Getty Images; Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images Mitch McConnell (left), Donald Trump
Donald Trump continues to stay active in Republican Party politics, expressing a desire this week to see Florida Sen. Rick Scott replace Sen. Mitch McConnell as the Republican leader in the Senate.
The former president, 76, sat with reporters for an interview aboard his private plane on Monday night, according to Fox News Digital. During the conversation, he called McConnell a "lousy leader" and Scott "highly underrated," according to The Hill.
Scott is believed to be quietly mulling a presidential run against Trump in 2024.
Republicans will elect a new GOP Senate leader to a two-year term in January — regardless of Tuesday's election results — and often the party's top-ranking official is a shoo-in for the position. In this case, that's Senate Minority Leader McConnell.
But if enough Republicans are dissatisfied with their leadership, they can nominate someone in his place. If Scott — or another senator — has enough support, they could take the job away from McConnell, which is likely what Trump is pushing for when publicly endorsing Scott.
McConnell is the longest-serving Senate Republican leader in U.S. history, holding the title since 2007. During his tenure, he has switched between Senate majority leader and minority leader, based on which party controls the upper chamber of Congress.
Kevin Dietsch/Getty Rick Scott
In the same interview, Trump — who has openly teased a forthcoming announcement about his 2024 presidential aspirations — dissuaded other possible Republican candidates from running against him, saying "it would be good for the party," according to Fox.
The statement appeared to target Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who polls say is the most likely Republican to give Trump a challenge in a hypothetical presidential primary.
DeSantis, who was elected Florida governor in 2018, is likely to cruise to reelection Tuesday, according to polls. But as his reputation has risen, so have calls for him to take Trump on in 2024.
RELATED: Ron DeSantis Goes Silent When Asked in Debate to Rule Out 2024 Presidential Run
Tristan Wheelock/Bloomberg via Getty Ron DeSantis
Vanity Fair cites "four prominent Republicans" who say DeSantis has indicated that he would not launch a campaign against the former president.
"He's led them to believe he will not run if Trump does," one source — identified as a Republican briefed on donor conversations — told the outlet.
During a political rally in Ohio Monday night, Trump implied that he would formally declare candidacy for 2024 after the midterm elections, offering up Nov. 15 as the date for his big announcement and Mar-a-Lago as the location.
Trump's former chief of staff Reince Priebus told the outlet he was "95%" sure that Trump would run, noting: "The real question is are other big challengers going to run? If President Trump runs, he will be very difficult for any Republican to defeat."
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Trump — who made history as the first president to be impeached twice while in office — is currently facing a large number of legal issues and being investigated at the federal and state level (in both criminal and civil cases) for a variety of allegations linked to presidential records, the 2020 election and the Trump Organization.
