Sen. Ted Cruz rages at Mitch McConnell over lack of spending on his Texas reelection bid
The Lone Star State senator doesn’t want to be left all alone.Sen.
Ted Cruz (R-Texas) bashed the Senate Minority Leader and expressed frustration over the lack of support he has received from the Mitch McConnell-aligned Senate Leadership Fund.“Sadly no, not a penny,” Cruz vented on Fox News’ “Life Liberty & Levin,” when asked if he got any resources from the Senate Leadership Fund.“McConnell runs the largest Republican super PAC in the country and has $400 million but that super PAC is used to reward the Republican senators who obey him and to punish those who dare to stand up to him,” he added.
Technically, McConnell is precluded by federal campaign finance law from directly making spending decisions for the Senate Leadership Fund, though he has actively raised money for it.The group is also stacked with loyalists, including his former chief of staff Steven Law who is its CEO.Cruz has a lengthy history of chaffing with McConnell.
During his first year in the upper chamber, Cruz championed a push to leverage a government funding fight in a bid to scrap the Affordable Care Act — a ploy that McConnell opposed.Ultimately, that led to a government shutdown in 2013 and the Affordable Care Act remained intact.From there, Cruz and McConnell have repeatedly butted heads on what tactics to employ.“Chuck Schumer has been explicit on his number one target in the country, and they are spending between $100 and $150 million trying to beat me,” Cruz warned.
Republicans generally feel outgunned by Democrats on the airwaves in key House and Senate races.The GOP has a favorable 2024 Senate map, only needing to defend 11 seats compared to the Democrats’ 23 seats — including three held by Independents.
Still, Democrats have incumbents and a lot of cash to defend those seats.Texas is ranked as the weakest incumbent Senate seat for the GOP of the 2024 cycle, with a “Lean Republican” rating from the Cook Political Report.
Despite Texas going to for...