Former Republican Senate leaders Bob Dole, Kan., and Trent Lott, Miss., co-authored an op-ed in today’s Wall Street Journal praising current Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. Dole and Lott write that they “have both been impressed with Sen. McConnell’s leadership in these first few months of the 114th Congress…”
They list McConnell’s leadership in getting 30 bipartisan bills passed in the Senate, including trade-promotion authority legislation, a bill to approve the Keystone XL pipeline, as well as legislation on Iran, Medicare and appropriations. They praise McConnell’s efforts to pass the Senate’s first budget in years and laud him for getting the Senate “functioning properly” again.
Dole and Lott are particularly impressed with McConnell’s efforts to reach across the aisle. “In a time of Democratic control of the White House and increased polarization between the parties,” they write, “Mr. McConnell has shown real skill in securing bipartisan support to get bills over the 60-vote hurdle necessary for passage.” They also commend him for working with President Obama on “the handful of matters where agreement is possible.”
Between them, Dole and Lott led Senate Republicans for nearly 16 years, from 1987-2003, mostly in the minority. “In only six months, the progress has been dramatic,” they write, adding that under McConnell, they are relieved “to see an institution that we both devoted so much of our lives to working again.”
Daniel Allott is deputy commentary editor for the Washington Examiner
