The Lincoln Project has released a new ad mocking former President Donald Trump for his beef with Senate Minority Mitch McConnell (D-Ky.) and declared McConnell the actual leader of the Republican Party.
“Does Mitch call the shots now, Donald?” the narrator of the ad asks. “He says he runs the Republican party, the party you built. He’s the boss now. He’s even taking shots at you.”
“When did Mitch overpower you?” the narrator asks following a clip of McConnell blaming Trump for inciting an insurrection against Congress on January 6.
“He doesn’t care what you think of candidates, he’s in charge,” the ad says. “He’ll pick them himself and they’ll be loyal to Mitch, not you.”
You can watch the ad, which warns Trump he can “kiss 2024 goodbye” if he doesn’t stop McConnell, below.
McConnell has criticized the former president more than once and has indicated he is looking to move on to ensuring Republicans regain their majority in the Senate after experiencing significant setbacks under the Trump administration.
Earlier this month, McConnell evaded the question of whether he would “welcome” Trump’s involvement come midterm elections in 2022.
“Well, he has his own agenda,” McConnell said of Trump, before proceeding to criticize the Biden administration.
“And my view is we’re going to focus on this administration and the future, what they’re trying to do to the country, and make it a referendum in the fall of ’22 on how people feel about this new government they narrowly elected while they continue a 50-50 Senate and a close score over in the House,” he said.
The relationship between Trump and McConnell has been largely strained since McConnell acknowledged President Joe Biden as the winner of the 2020 general election even as Trump mounted a failed campaign to overturn the election results that culminated in the Capitol riot of January 6.