Lee Demands ‘New Leadership’ As McConnell Pushes More Ukraine Aid

Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) is echoing calls from conservative voters who have demanded that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) step down over his continued push for American taxpayers to fund the Ukraine war.

Conservatives have long been calling for McConnell’s resignation over his advanced age and clear health problems, especially in light of his recent “freezing” episodes — where the 81-year-old Kentucky senator was seen standing motionless and silent while staring off into space at a podium for several seconds on two separate occasions.

Now, McConnell’s vehement support of the never-ending war in Ukraine has led to increased calls for his resignation — or at the very least, for him to step down from Senate leadership.

On Friday night, Lee demanded new Senate Republican leadership — citing a Wall Street Journal opinion piece from Kimberly Strassel that details how McConnell plans to ram Ukraine aid down the “House’s throat.”

In the op-ed, Strassel explains how McConnell plans to help Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) force the Republican-controlled House to agree to another $24 billion in aid to Ukraine.

“Mitch McConnell has been making daily floor speeches on the need for more Ukraine funding, worried Mr. McCarthy can’t get this crucial aid past House GOP spending hard-liners. So Mr. McConnell is… signing up to help Mr. Schumer ram the whole package down the House’s throat,” Strassel wrote.

In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Lee pointed out that Republicans have become increasingly frustrated with Senate GOP leadership — as they continue to push through bills that have the full support of Democrats but are rather divisive among Republicans.

“With Republicans like these, who needs Democrats? We need new leadership. Republicans nationwide have grown tired of Senate Republican leadership supporting bills that unite Democrats (because they’re full of Democratic priorities) while sharply dividing Republicans,” the Utah senator wrote in a post on his personal account.

Lee is not the only senator to question McConnell’s fitness for office. Last week, Sen. Josh Hawley stated during an appearance on Fox News that McConnell was “not my choice for leader” and said that the Senate needed a change.