Last month, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell disparaged the “candidate quality” of some would-be senators who were endorsed by former President Donald Trump.
Now McConnell is putting his money where his mouth is.
A powerful political action committee (super PAC) aligned with McConnell had previously reserved $10 million in television advertisements for Senate candidate Blake Masters, an investor running to unseat Arizona Democrat Mark Kelly.
Now, that super PAC has canceled the $10 million donation, a PAC official said Tuesday.
Even before the $9.6 million announcement, the organization had already slashed $8 million from its Arizona fund last month, the Post reported.
As of Tuesday, McConnell’s PAC has slashed $17.6 million from its Arizona fund. It’s also canceled all remaining investments into TV ads in the state.
The PAC — called the Senate Leadership Fund (SLF) — has defended its decision.
SLF President Steven Law expects other groups to pay for the SLF’s budget cuts, and so he would prefer to spend his $9.6 million elsewhere.
“We’re glad to see Republican outside forces showing up in a big way in Arizona, with millions in new spending pledged to take down Mark Kelly in the final stretch,” Law told Axios, the first outlet to report the story.
Sure enough, billionaire Peter Thiel poured money into Masters during the Republican primary.
In the general election, Thiel has given money to a PAC investing $1.68 million into the Masters campaign, according to disclosure forms. He intends to hold a fundraiser for Masters later this month at his home in Los Angeles, according to a report by CNBC.
Thiel once employed Masters at his investment firm Thiel Capital.
McConnell has privately encouraged Thiel to donate even more money, one anonymous source told the Post.
Plus, McConnell himself is still fundraising for Masters. He intends to appear with Masters at an event this Wednesday, according to a reporter from Punchbowl News.
However, McConnell’s PAC intends to invest that $9.6 million outside Arizona, into closer Senate races, like those in Georgia and Nevada.
“This allows us to pursue offensive opportunities, maximize our investment in existing commitments, and concentrate our efforts to win the Senate majority,” Law told Axios. He later assured the Post, “We remain optimistic that the issue environment is in our favor, we have multiple pathways to obtain the majority, and we are spending heavily and strategically to achieve that goal.”
Candidates in Georgia and Nevada seem unlikely to pull money from investors outside politics.
On the campaign trail, Masters has bashed McConnell as “part of the swamp.”
“My criticism of Mitch McConnell is that he doesn’t know how to play offense,” Masters said, according to Punchbowl. “I’d love to vote for a viable alternative.”
The SLF presdient has privately expressed skepticism about Masters’ political prospects, according to the anonymous source for the Post.
The Horn editorial team