Politico: “Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell’s relationship simply can’t go on like this for Senate Republicans. Though the Senate GOP is tantalizingly close to retaking the majority next year and largely united in opposition to President Joe Biden’s agenda, the ongoing feud between the former president and the Senate minority leader has decayed to an entirely untenable place. Trump’s insult-laden diatribe against McConnell this weekend signals that the GOP could splinter badly in primaries next year – and raises the question of whether McConnell and Trump can work together at all. In theory, the two Republicans could be back serving together in fewer than four years. But not if Trump keeps calling McConnell a ‘dumb son of a bitch’ and a ‘stone-cold loser.'”
“‘We’ve got issues as a party, with the demographic trends going against us, and we don’t have a lot of margin for error,’ said Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.), observing that the Trump-McConnell feud is still in ‘full flare’ at the moment. ‘When it comes to the infighting politically, I don’t know how that can help – when you’re scrapping on the margins, when you’re trying to win states, and especially national elections.’ The feud is mostly one-sided as of late; McConnell barely utters Trump’s name these days and has no communication with the former president. Still, several high-ranking senators said on Monday evening that Trump and McConnell need to reach an understanding of some sort or perhaps even resume speaking to each other, which at the moment seems unthinkable. ‘Hopefully there will be some sort of truce,’ said Senate Minority Whip John Thune. ‘It’s in everybody’s best interest – including the former president, if he wants to continue to stay viable politically – to help us win the majority in 2022. And that means working with Senate Republicans, and not against them.’ Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), the No. 5 leader, said she hoped ‘at some point’ Trump and McConnell could even reconcile. ‘We really need to come together, both Leader McConnell and President Trump,’ Ernst said. ‘We just need to have good discourse within the Republican Party right now.'”