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By Ewan Palmer
News Reporter
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MAGA figures have criticized Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell after he voted against the confirmation of Elbridge Colby, President Donald Trump's pick to serve as undersecretary of defense for policy.
Vice President JD Vance was among those who condemned the former Senate GOP leader for being the only Republican to oppose Colby's nomination, calling the move "political pettiness." Nate Morris, a Kentucky businessman and major Trump donor, added McConnell's opposition was "pathetic."
Newsweek has contacted McConnell's office for comment via email.
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Why It Matters
McConnell and Trump have had a fractured relationship since the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. McConnell has previously voted Trump's more divisive Cabinet and administration picks during Senate confirmations, including Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
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What to Know
Colby, a former deputy assistant secretary of defense for strategy and force development in the first Trump administration, was confirmed to the No. 3 post in the Pentagon in a 54-45 Senate vote Tuesday.
Three Democrats—Rhode Island's Jack Reed, Arizona's Mark Kelly, and Michigan's Elissa Slotkin—voted in favor of Colby. McConnell was the only Republican to oppose the nomination.
Vance criticized McConnell's stance on X, formerly Twitter, calling it another example of "political pettiness."
In response, Georgia Representative Mike Collins wrote: "Glad things are changing." McConnell, 83, the longest serving party leader in Senate history, will not seek reelection and will leave office in 2027 after more than 40 years in the Senate.
In a statement after the vote, McConnell criticized Colby's past comments suggesting the United States should shift its national security focus away from Europe and the Middle East toward China and the Indo-Pacific, calling such a move "geostrategic self harm."
McConnell, who chairs the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, which oversees much of the Pentagon's budget, has repeatedly warned against abandoning Ukraine amid Russia's invasion and has opposed what he views as a trend toward U.S. isolationism.
Colby has also faced criticism from hawkish lawmakers for suggesting the U.S. could contain a nuclear-armed Iran rather than pursue military intervention.
During his confirmation hearing in March, Colby said Iran having nuclear weapons would pose an "existential" threat to the U.S. and pledged to provide "credible" recommendations to prevent that outcome.
What People Are Saying
Vice President JD Vance posted on X: "Mitch's vote today—like so much of the last few years of his career—is one of the great acts of political pettiness I've ever seen."
Businessman Nate Morris wrote: "Elbridge Colby is one of the brightest foreign policy minds in the GOP, and it's pathetic watching Mitch McConnell continue to stand with Dems to sabotage President Donald Trump. This is why whoever replaces Mitch in the Senate needs to represent a clean break from him—time for a change!"
Donald Trump Jr. replied: "100% right."
MAGA political commentator Charlie Kirk wrote: "Congratulations to Elbridge Colby on his confirmation as President Donald Trump's undersecretary for policy at the Pentagon. Sen. McConnell votes no. Is anyone surprised at this point?"
Senator Mitch McConnell said in a statement: "Elbridge Colby's long public record suggests a willingness to discount the complexity of the challenges facing America, the critical value of our allies and partners, and the urgent need to invest in hard power to preserve American primacy. The prioritization that Mr. Colby argues is fresh, new, and urgently needed is, in fact, a return to an Obama-era conception of à la carte geostrategy. Abandoning Ukraine and Europe and downplaying the Middle East to prioritize the Indo-Pacific is not a clever geopolitical chess move. It is geostrategic self harm that emboldens our adversaries and drives wedges between America and our allies for them to exploit.
"As he gets to work, Mr. Colby will need to advance policies aligned with the president's recognition of U.S. interests across Europe, the Middle East, and the Indo-Pacific. I hope he will come to appreciate the essential role our allies play in advancing our collective interests, the urgent need for enduring investments in our national defense, and the linked and simultaneous challenges we face. Make no mistake: America will not be made great again by those who are content to manage our decline."
What Happens Next
Colby will soon be sworn in as undersecretary of defense for policy.
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