As the feud between President Donald Trump and Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) escalated on Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) refused to address the war of words and insisted that Republicans would remain unified in their quest to cut taxes, no matter the obstacles.
McConnell faced a barrage of questions from reporters about the latest back and forth between Corker and Trump after the President met with Republican senators during their weekly lunch. The Tennessee senator ramped up his criticisms of the President earlier in the morning, lamenting that Trump is “debasing” the country. Those remarks in turn prompted several angry tweets from Trump just hours before the President met with Senate Republicans.
Asked about Corker’s comment that Trump struggles with the truth, and whether he thinks the tension between Trump and Corker could undercut the GOP’s efforts to cut taxes, McConnell said he had nothing to say.
“I don’t have any observation about that,” he told reporters. “We’re here to try to accomplish things for the American people. We’re all on the same page on the issues that I’ve mentioned and of course front and center is comprehensive tax reform.”
McConnell also declined to reply directly when asked whether Trump’s feuding with senators hurts the Republican agenda. The majority leader instead insisted that tax reform is the ultimate unifier.
“If there’s anything all Republicans think are important to the country, and to our party, it’s comprehensive tax reform. The issue itself brings about great unity among our members,” McConnell said, adding that Trump shares the Senate GOP’s agenda and will do a great job promoting it.
When asked if he has an obligation to address criticisms of Trump from prominent Republicans like Corker and former President George W. Bush, McConnell again refused to cede any ground.
“What I have an obligation to do, is to try to achieve the greatest cohesion I can among 52 Republicans,” he said. “And tax reform is what we are about. If there’s anything that unifies Republicans, it’s tax reform.”
“We’re going to concentrate on what our agenda is and not any of these other distractions that you all may be interested in,” he added.
Finally, when asked about the Corker feud one more time, McConnell simply said that everyone has a right to speak their minds.
“There’s a lot of noise out there. You have a first amendment in this country. Everyone has a right to express themselves,” the majority leader said. “I think there’s great cohesion among Republicans of all persuasions to achieve this goal before the end of the year.”
