McConnell endorses Crist; still mum on Bunning
U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell may have a tepid relationship with fellow Kentucky Republican Sen. Jim Bunning, but he appears to have a much warmer relationship with GOP rising star and 2010 Senate candidate Florida Gov. Charlie Crist.
According to Crist’s website, McConnell gave the governor a full-throated endorsement. “Decisions are being made every day in Washington that have a direct impact upon the lives of all Americans and we need Charlie Crist in the U.S. Senate to ensure that those decisions will benefit the citizens of Florida.”
Crist, McConnell and other party luminaries are slated to attend a campaign fund-raising event for the governor later this month at the National Republican Senatorial Committee’s Washington headquarters.
Bunning hasn’t exactly received the royal treatment since announcing his bid for a third-term. Last month, McConnell skirted questions during a TV interview on whether he’ll endorse the Hall of Fame pitcher’s bid. Bunning is widely considered the most vulnerable incumbent seeking re-election to the Senate in 2010.
“It’s just not clear exactly who the players are going to be in Kentucky,” McConnell told “Fox News Sunday” host Chris Wallace last month.
Bunning has acknowledged that during a meeting in December, McConnell told him that “I was too old and I couldn’t win” a re-election battle in 2010.
- Halimah Abdullah
About the Author: John Stamper is the accountability editor for the Lexington Herald-Leader. A native of Monticello, Ky., he has been with the Herald-Leader in a variety of roles since graduating from Western Kentucky University in 2000. Reach him at jstamper@herald-leader.com
Ron | Jun 12, 2009 | Reply
Christ? Don’t you mean Charlie CRIST?
Ron | Jun 12, 2009 | Reply
McConnell and Bunning need to go crawl under a rock.
Hannah | Jun 12, 2009 | Reply
He’s always got that uncertain/scared look. It makes me uneasy.
Ron | Jun 12, 2009 | Reply
If your paper needs a proofreader or editor, contact me. I review this site every day and catch at least a dozen typographical or grammatical errors. You can disregard my first comment now that it has been corrected.
Yin-Yang | Jun 12, 2009 | Reply
McConnell is a putz!!! His expression is one of uneasiness and inability to get clear points across that actually make sense…
jerry | Jun 16, 2009 | Reply
McConnell and his pal Hal only want what they can get, either one will not stand up and say what they are for unless they benefit greatly from it. Hal wants it named after him but Mitch the &itch will just settle for adding to his contribution pile. Can they still take it home when they finally get voted off the island??