McConnell fight with GOP opponent shifts to new battleground Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) defeated Sen. Rick Scott’s (Fla.) bid to take his job, but the battle isn’t over.
McConnell now faces a fight with Scott and other Senate conservatives over whether to block a year-end spending package before Christmas.
The GOP leader wants to pass the omnibus package funding the federal government before the end of December, according to Senate Republican and Democratic sources. But he’s coming under increasing pressure from conservatives who want to freeze federal spending until January, when Republicans will take control of the House.
Scott told The Hill he plans to “actively” press for a stopgap funding measure freezing federal spending levels until next year, something he and Republican Sens. Mike Lee (Utah) and Ted Cruz (Texas) called for in September in a Fox News op-ed.
That would put spending negotiations on hold until Republicans take over the House majority and have more leverage to negotiate the top-line spending number and specific priorities, such as more funding to secure the U.S.-Mexico border. ..............
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/3745590-mcconnell-fight-with-gop-opponent-shifts-to-new-battleground/