A furious Republican senator has branded any Republicans downplaying the crushing midterm election defeat as “stupid.”
Sen. John Kennedy, 74, lashed out Wednesday night as his party descended into infighting after losing both chambers of Congress to Democrats and warned that the GOP would further alienate voters unless it took urgent action before handing over control in January.
“This was not a normal midterm election loss. If you think that, congratulations, you’re stupid,” the Louisiana Republican told Sean Hannity on Fox News.
U.S. President Donald Trump has overseen historic midterm losses and Kennedy suggested the GOP appears unable to compute the scale of defeat.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Kennedy’s warning came just two days after Hannity himself had tried to play down the Republican disaster, arguing on Monday’s show that the election result was not unusual. The conservative presenter claimed the losses were in keeping with previous midterm setbacks suffered by presidents, despite Democrats making extraordinary gains in the Senate.
Kennedy, who is renowned for his colorful Southern expressions, told Republicans they needed to stop behaving as though they knew everything. Offering an unusual metaphor in the difference between intelligence and wisdom, he illustrated his point with a joke about going to the toilet.
“A smart man washes his hands after he urinates. A wise man doesn’t urinate on his hands. We Republicans in the Senate need to stop thinking we’re so smart,” Kennedy said.
Sean Hannity is among those who have sought to play down the scale of thew Republican defeat.
Kennedy argued that voters had actively rejected his party rather than simply staying home, borrowing fellow Republican Sen. Jim Justice’s habit of referring to ordinary Americans as Toby and Edith.
“They voted for Democrats, and we’ve gotta get Toby and Edith back,” he said, making a suggestion about what Republicans must do in their remaining weeks in power in order to do so.
His proposals included banning stock trading by lawmakers, changing taxes on profits from home sales, tightening rules governing paid presidential pardon intermediaries and increasing military spending.
However, Kennedy claimed Republican Senate leaders had refused to let him pursue his plans.
Sen. John Kennedy looks unhappy as he speaks to Sean Hannity about the GOP reaction to its midterm mauling.
His complaints come amid a bitter battle over the future of the party’s Senate leadership.
Kennedy had joined four other Republican senators in an unsuccessful attempt to delay Tuesday’s leadership election so members could discuss what went wrong.
They were going after Senate Majority Leader John Thune, 65, who has faced growing fury over his handling of Trump’s legislative priorities. Despite the rebellion, Thune was re-elected unopposed Tuesday.
Undeterred, Kennedy continued to press his case Wednesday, and told the Senate that Republicans should attempt another major spending and policy package before Democrats take over. This would include at least $200 billion in additional military funding amid concerns the armed forces are running out of ammunition after months of war with Iran.
“There’s only one problem with my suggestion,” he said, “I’ve gotta have permission from Senate leadership to do it, and at the moment, they declined to give it to me. So, if you know anybody, make a few calls because we’ve gotta do something.”
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