During a conversation with Punchbowl News, Chuck Schumer said Mitch McConnell will still have a chance at salvaging some of his reputation.
Schumer and McConnell have quite a bit of a relationship, having served together in the senate for decades. And despite the fact that they sit on opposite sides of the aisle, the two certainly have a friendly working relationship.
McConnell served in leadership while Donald Trump was in office. While it was clear that the Kentucky lawmaker didn't like Trump, he was also willing to use him to accomplish his goals. Schumer says McConnell can claw back some of his reputation by moving the party away from Trump.
"[McConnell’s] role in history, in my opinion, will go down poorly," Schumer told Punchbowl News. "Not just on Roe, but on issue after issue where they’re so far out of touch with the American people. Even when McConnell thought Trump was wrong, he went along with him too many times."
All is not lost for McConnell according to Schumer. The New York Democrat advised, "He can salvage some of that reputation — and I’m not trying to tell him what to do — by trying to get the old Republican Party back. He will ally with us in not being isolationist. He feels that passionately."
Schumer closed, "I know from my Senate experience and my friendship with Senate colleagues that many of them, even if they go along with Trump, don’t like him and don’t think he’s good for their party or what they believe in. Exhibit A is Mitch McConnell."