Rick Scott seeks Trump’s mantle in race for Senate Republican leader

WASHINGTON – A looming battle among Senate Republicans over who to choose as their next majority leader is becoming an early test of how much power President-elect Donald Trump’s MAGA movement will wield in his second term.

The three-way race to replace outgoing Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky pits Minority Whip John Thune of South Dakota against John Cornyn of Texas, a former McConnell deputy, and underdog candidate Rick Scott of Florida.

The fight will measure the stamina of long-serving senior Republicans based on an institutionalist view of the Senate, like Thune and Cornyn, against a emboldened pro-Trump wing that wants to smash remnants of the old GOP when he returns back to power.

Scott, who is seeking to claim the latter mantle, said in an interview Monday that he will push the “Trump agenda” if elected.

“I talk to all my colleagues and they are clear about what they want and know that we have to change. They want to be treated as equals, want to be part of a team. They know I have a good relationship with Trump and the Speaker of the House, and I’m a businessman. And I will get the Trump agenda done, Scott said.

MAGA influencers online have started an online pressure campaign to lower current and former McConnell deputies — and boost Scott — ahead of a candidate forum Tuesday and an expected closed election Wednesday.

Right-wing commentator Tucker Carlson said Scott is the “only candidate who agrees with Donald Trump” and claimed that the other two candidates “hate Trump and what he ran on.” (Thune and Cornyn have been critical of Trump in the past, but both endorsed him this year.)

Billionaire Trump benefactor Elon Musk too Scott supportedand said Monday, “The new Senate Majority Leader must respond to the will of the people.”

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., one of Trump’s best allies on the Hill, urged senators to elect Scott. “The Republican Conference should elect a leader who represents the people, not the same good boy as has been done for decades,” Greene said on X.

But it is far from clear that the campaign will succeed. The Senate is a famously insular body relatively detached from populist fervor, giving members six-year terms and usually operating on a seniority basis. It would be unusual for Scott to jump from two colleagues who have served much longer, cultivated deeper relationships and each paid their dues in the pursuit of the job.

Most importantly, the election will be held by secret ballot. Unlike votes on legislation and nominations—as well as the vote for Speaker of the House—votes for Senate leadership are anonymous. That means relationships will be paramount, and the online pro-Trump army won’t know how members voted.

“It’s a loud online presence that ultimately doesn’t count votes in the Senate,” said a Senate Republican aide, who requested anonymity to speak candidly about the dynamics of the race. “And senators react negatively to this.

Most notably, Trump himself has not weighed in as all three candidates seek to demonstrate their pro-Trump bona fides.

Scott called Trump in May to ask for his support in the leadership race, which he said he would appreciate, and his goal is to pressure Trump to announce his support before Wednesday’s election, according to two people familiar with his mindset.

In interviews since Election Day, Scott said he and Trump have communicated via text.

But Scott was brave when asked Monday if he thinks he has Trump’s support.

“I welcome everyone’s support. He supported me in 2022 in my run against Mitch McConnell,” Scott said.

Asked if he is seeking Trump’s approval, he replied: “I don’t want to talk about private conversations.”

Lara Trump, a co-chair of the Republican National Committee and Trump’s daughter-in-law, noted that Scott has been “very loyal” to Trump in one interview with pro-Trump pundit Benny Johnson on Monday. She stopped short of endorsing him, but suggested that voters who like Scott and think he should lead the GOP conference should contact their senators.

‘Thun’s race to lose’

Scott is less popular with his colleagues than Thune and Cornyn; in 2022 he got just 10 votes when he unsuccessfully challenged McConnell for the top job. Thune and Cornyn have well-established relationships as leaders at the conference.

Cornyn’s office touted a total of $415 million raised for GOP senators and candidates during his 22 years in the Senate, helped by two terms as chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

This cycle, Cornyn’s office said, he raised about $33 million for GOP candidates. A source close to Thune touted a similar dollar figure for the 2024 election.

“It’s Thune’s race to lose,” said Mike Davis, a combative Trump ally who was formerly a top aide to Senate Republicans.

But Davis said the price of taking on the job will be advancing Trump’s agenda.

“Senate Republicans — especially the Senate Republican leadership — need to understand that the American people put President Trump back in the White House with his America First agenda. And any Republican leadership candidate who doesn’t agree with that should get out of the way,” he said .

Scott, who just won a second six-year term, said in an interview that his victory in Florida shows that Republicans do not need to moderate their views.

“We never moderated our positions and we continued to win,” he said on Friday. “Now, if you look at the country, we are the center of the Republican Party. … The whole country is moving in our direction.”

Even before last week’s election, Scott had sought to become a bridge between House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and his Senate GOP conference and push McConnell out of relevance. And with Republicans on course to hold a narrow majority in the House, Scott sees his ties to Johnson as an edge in the leadership race.

A handful of sitting Republican senators have publicly endorsed him: Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, Marco Rubio of Florida, Rand Paul of Kentucky, Bill Hagerty of Tennessee and Tommy Tuberville of Alabama. The names of some of them, such as Rubio, Hagerty and Tuberville, have been floated for senior positions in the Trump administration.

Trump is expected to meet with President Johnson and the new Senate majority leader on Wednesday, according to two sources familiar with the matter. The Senate is expected to hold its majority leader vote on Wednesday at 9.30, the same day that Trump is to meet with President Joe Biden at the White House.

Of the three senators in the running to succeed McConnell, Scott was the only one to do an interview on the Sunday broadcasts this weekend as he promoted his “close relationship” with the speaker on Fox News.

The interview and the MAGA online campaign were deliberate moves to project an outpouring of support for Scott and put pressure on Thune, who is considered the front-runner.

Trump has done one public demand: The next GOP leader should shore up his ability to make “recess appointments” to temporarily install staff without Senate confirmation.

“I have spent eight months carefully listening to my colleagues about their vision for the next chapter of the Senate Republican Conference, especially as we embarked on President Trump,” Thune said in a statement. “One thing is clear: We must act quickly and decisively to get the President’s Cabinet and other nominees in place as soon as possible to begin delivering on the mandate we have been sent to carry out, and all options are on the table for to make it happen, including recess deals. We cannot let Chuck Schumer and Senate Democrats block the will of the American people.”

Cornyn swore that if Democrats block Trump’s nominee, “we will stay in session, including weekends, until they give in. Additionally, the Constitution expressly grants the president the power to make recess appointments.”

Scott, meanwhile, Trump replied on X: “100% agree.”