Mitch McConnell may not be on the ballot, but his long-standing grudge with Donald Trump is set to make headlines in the final stretch before the election. A new biography, *The Price of Power*, set to release just days before voters hit the polls, reveals that McConnell wanted Trump to “pay a price” for the January 6 Capitol protests. According to Axios, the Senate Minority Leader supported the charges brought against Trump by Special Counsel Jack Smith, saying that if Trump hadn’t committed indictable offenses, “I don’t know what one is.”
This new book peels back the layers of McConnell’s quiet yet consistent opposition to Trump, especially in light of the events of January 6. In interviews with author Michael Tackett, McConnell reportedly pointed the finger directly at Trump, saying, “There’s no doubt who inspired it,” and that he hoped Trump would have to pay for his role in the riot. Despite his criticism, McConnell ultimately voted to acquit Trump during the second impeachment trial, arguing that the former president was no longer in office and that impeachment was moot.
But McConnell’s private views, as laid out in the book, reveal a deeper disdain for Trump’s handling of January 6 and the chaos that followed. He came close to voting to convict Trump, which would have been a political death sentence for the former president, preventing him from ever running for office again. Though McConnell didn’t pull the trigger, his statement at the time was damning enough: “We have a criminal justice system in this country. We have civil litigation. And former presidents are not immune.”
McConnell has spent the past few years distancing himself from Trump behind the scenes. In 2022, he reportedly arranged a secret meeting with former House Speaker Paul Ryan and Fox News executives to voice his concerns about Trump. In that meeting, McConnell noted that Rupert Murdoch wasn’t exactly a fan of Trump anymore either—a hint at the growing divide within conservative media over how to handle the former president.
With Trump facing a trial after the election, McConnell’s remarks from the book may stir more division within the GOP. Trump’s base is as loyal as ever, but McConnell represents the old guard of Republicans who are eager to see the party move on from Trump. Whether this latest revelation has any effect on Election Day remains to be seen, but McConnell has made it clear where he stands: Trump needs to be held accountable.