Donald Trump upset the whole applecart on the Coronavirus Relief Bill at the last moment.
He did that to preserve his legacy as our Disrupter-in-Chief.
He insisted that instead of a paltry $600 to every starving American, it had to be $2,000, then he directed his formerly close political friend, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, to fix the problem that he caused; but Mitch was too savvy to take the bait.
And most of the other Republicans in Congress refused to follow their always mendacious leader.
So it came as no surprise to us here at AP that McConnell promptly tabled Trump’s quixotic play, and now Trump’s furious that Mitch refuses to do his bidding (https://www.politico.com/news/2020/12/29/2-000-checks-sputter-mcconnell-blocks-dems-451918, https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/29/politics/republican-senator-reject-2000-stimulus-increase/index.html).
Our Chief Congressional Correspondent, associate solitary reporter Melissa Smith, surprised McConnell as he was on his way to the airport to campaign in Georgia to keep his largely illegitimate Senate majority.
“Melissa,” he said, “Get out of my way, I have very important work to do.”
But Smith wouldn’t budge. And McConnell knew what to expect, so he said, “I know that Senator Loeffler is a total follower of Mr. Trump, and she’s a terrible campaigner, while her Democratic opponent, Reverend Warnock, is a far, far better candidate; but politics is a blood sport, and I’m the smartest politician ever to represent Kentucky.”
"Come to think of it, I am a much more masterful Master of the Senate than LBJ."
At which point Smith pulled out of her gigantic purse all four volumes of Robert Caro's prize-winning books about President Lyndon Baines Johnson.
She then courtseyed and went back to her office at the DNC to prepare tomorrow's post about Missouri's junior senator, Josh Hawley, a Trumpite if there ever was one.
But before she left, McConnell yelled out to her, “Senator Loeffler’s husband, Jeffrey Sprecher, runs the New York Stock Exchange, so they’re both filthy rich, and I always side with the rich over the always disgruntled poor.”
But Smith knows that early voting trends in Georgia are showing signs of hope for the Democratic candidates, Rev. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff (https://www.politico.com/news/2020/12/30/georgia-senate-early-voting-452221.