Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., declined to say Wednesday whether he was concerned by a New York Times opinion piece by an anonymous senior Trump administration official describing how White House aides are trying to undermine the president.
“Look, my job is to try to achieve as much for the American people as I can. You know, these Republican governments don’t come along very often,” McConnell said during an interview with Fox News, referring to how the GOP seized the White House, the Senate, and the House after the 2016 elections.
“We don’t want to squander that opportunity,” he continued. “I think we’ve done a lot for the American people and we’re going to do a lot more before the end of the year.”
McConnell added that he had not seen the op-ed until the “set-up at the beginning of this show.”
In the essay, published Wednesday afternoon, the unnamed Trump aide details how they and other staffers work “diligently” to frustrate parts of the president’s agenda and “his worst inclinations” because they believe their first duty is to the country rather than the White House.
“It may be cold comfort in this chaotic era, but Americans should know that there are adults in the room,” the op-ed states. “We fully recognize what is happening. And we are trying to do what’s right even when Donald Trump won’t.”
McConnell also reiterated his support of Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Wednesday following President Trump’s escalated attacks on the country’s top law enforcement officer and the Justice Department. Trump would not tell Bloomberg in an interview last Thursday if Sessions would remain attorney general after the 2018 midterm elections.
“I’m a big supporter of Jeff Sessions,” McConnell said Wednesday. “I think he’s done a good job and I hope he stays right where he is.”
