Allies of President-elect Donald Trump are pushing for Florida Senator Rick Scott to succeed Mitch McConnell as Senate Republican leader - in a move they hope will make it easier to push through the president-elect’s agenda.
Elon Musk, the X/Twitter executive who poured money to elect Trump, pushed for the Florida Republican, who overwhelmingly won re-election last week, to replace McConnell, who will step aside as Republican leader later this year. Scott is one of the far-right members of the Senate, but on Wednesday could win the vote to help dictate the direction of the Senate and which bills are discussed.
“Rick Scott for Senate Majority Leader!” Musk enthusiastically tweeted on Sunday.
Musk quote-tweeted a post from Scott that itself quote-tweeted a post from Trump that demanded that any Republican leader allow for recess appointments.
“Sometimes the votes can take two years, or more,” Trump posted. “This is what they did four years ago, and we cannot let it happen again. We need positions filled IMMEDIATELY!”
In response, Scott said he would comply.
“100% agree. I will do whatever it takes to get your nominations through as quickly as possible,” he said.
Recess appointments happen when a president makes a nomination for a position that typically requires a Senate confirmation vote. But they have largely lapsed since 2006 and the Senate usually conducts pro forma sessions, brief meetings where the Senate conducts no business, rather than actually going in recess, to prevent recess appointments.
Scott, a former two-term governor of Florida who won his first race for Senate in 2018, is considered one of the most right-wing members of the upper chamber.
He caused controversy last year when President Joe Biden highlighted how a proposed policy agenda by Scott would cause all laws to be sunset every five years, which would include Social Security and Medicare. Scott later revised the policy to specifically exempt Social Security and Medicare.
Scott also flopped as chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee during the 2022 cycle, when Republicans failed to flip a single seat and lost a competitive race in Pennsylvania. Afterward, Scott attempted to stage a challenge against McConnell.
Tucker Carlson, the right-wing provocateur and media figure, posted on X criticizing McConnell for wanting to hold leadership elections so early after the election to prevent a sufficiently right-wing Senate leader.
“The election is Wednesday, it’s by secret ballot, and it will determine whether or not the new administration succeeds,” he said. “Rick Scott of Florida is the only candidate who agrees with Donald Trump.”
In response, Robert F Kennedy Jr, the former Democrat and third-party candidate who endorsed Trump, pushed for Scott.
“Without Rick Scott, the entire Trump reform agenda wobbly,” Kennedy said.
McConnell announced in February that he would leave his post. The two other main candidates for leader include Senate Minority Whip John Thune and Senator John Cornyn of Texas, the previous Republican whip.
Carlson criticized Cornyn in his post.
“One of them, John Cornyn, is an angry liberal whose politics are indistinguishable from Liz Cheney’s,” he said.
