Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Monday vowed to be the “Grim Reaper” for progressive policies if Republicans hold on to the Senate in 2020.
“If I’m still the majority leader in the Senate think of me as the Grim Reaper. None of that stuff is going to pass,” McConnell said while speaking to community leaders in Owensboro, Ky.
McConnell noted that if Republicans win back the House or President Trump wins reelection “that takes care of it.” But he pledged that even if Republicans lose the White House, he would use his position as majority leader to block progressive proposals like the Green New Deal.
“I guarantee you that if I’m the last man standing and I’m still the majority leader, it ain’t happening. I can promise you,” McConnell added.
His comments come as Republicans have seized on proposals like the Green New Deal and “Medicare for All” to paint Democrats as shifting to the left and embracing “socialism” as the next election nears.
McConnell painted the 2020 election as a choice between capitalism and socialism, arguing that the latter has taken roots within the Democratic Party. He pointed to progressive pushes from freshman Democrats like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), making a veiled reference to the self-identified democratic socialist.
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