Top Republican Mitch McConnell has repeatedly blasted Donald Trump, calling him a "narcissist" and saying he was counting the days until he left office, according to a new biography of his set to come out this month. Other remarks include describing the then-president as "stupid as well as ill-tempered" and a "despicable human being."
The remarks will be part of "The Price of Power," a book by Mitchel Tackett, the deputy Washington bureau chief of The Associated Press. It includes recorded diaries from McConnell spanning almost 30 years and several interviews with him.
Despite this, as well as Trump's visible animosity toward McConnell, the Senate Minority leader endorsed the former president's candidacy earlier this year, saying "it should come as no surprise." He will however step aside from the leadership after this election cycle, but stay in his seat until the end of his term in 2026.
According to different passages of the book, the most salient comments by McConnell took place before the January 6 assault on the Capitol, when Trump was seeking to overturn the result of the presidential elections he lost against Joe Biden.
"It's not just the Democrats who are counting the days" until he left office, he said in his recordings, adding that Trump's behavior "only underscores the good judgement of the American people." "They've had just enough of the misrepresentations, the outright lies almost on a daily basis, and they fired him."
"For a narcissist like him," that's been "really hard to take, and so for his behavior since the election has been even worse, by far, than it was before because he has no filter now at all," said the senator, who congratulated Biden after the Electoral College certified the votes. He had also warned his fellow Republicans against changing the results.
McConnell was taken to a secure location with other congressional leaders during January 6. Once the rioters were expelled and the Senate certified Biden's victory, he said that "this failed attempt to obstruct the Congress, this failed insurrection, only underscores how crucial the task before us is for our republic." He later harshly criticized Trump, saying he was "practically and morally responsible" for the attack. However, he voted to acquit him in after he was impeached by Democrats for his role on the riots and endorsed his 2024 run.
"Whatever I may have said about President Trump pales in comparison to what JD Vance, Lindsey Graham, and others have said about him, but we are all on the same team now," McConnell told The Associated Press when addressing his past criticism.
© 2024 Latin Times. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
