Trump picked a fight with his own Senate leader and Republicans are now picking sides

WASHINGTON, DC: A few days ago, President Donald Trump revealed that he will not support Senate Majority Leader John Thune for another term, as the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE Act) remains on hold. Now several GOP members have hinted that they are willing to support Thune even against Trump’s will.

President Trump was frustrated with Thune for not being able to get the SAVE Act approved by the upper chamber and yet refusing to cancel the August recess.

Republican senators rally behind John Thune

Many Republican senators say Thune will have their full support, even if Trump backs a challenger, because of the Senate leader’s refusal to abolish the filibuster to advance Trump’s top legislative priorities, such as the SAVE Act.

“There's a lot of respect for John Thune. There’s a lot of recognition of how he works and how difficult his job is and a belief that he’s doing it really well under difficult circumstances,” said Sen Jerry Moran (R-Kan).

Moran said Republican senators have gone along with Trump on several issues, but they would not let Trump push Thune out of his job or pick a replacement.

“I also think there are some things where the Senate seems willing to cede their privileges, but I think who our leader is, there’s a real sense that that belongs to us,” he said.

Republicans acknowledge John Thune's difficult leadership challenge

Several other Republicans, who wanted Thune to cancel the recess to debate the SAVE Act, acknowledge that Thune has had to navigate a political minefield as GOP leader.

“It’s a hard job, it’s really a hard job,” said Sen Rick Scott (R-Fla), a leading proponent of the SAVE Act.

Asked if he continues to have confidence in Thune despite the growing criticism from the White House, Scott noted that presidents often get irritated over the 60-vote bar to clear their legislative agenda.

“I’m sure if I were president of the United States, I would be frustrated if everything I wanted didn’t get done. So that’s probably pretty common,” the Florida senator said.

Sen John Kennedy (R-La) said he doesn’t “know of any movements to replace” Thune even though Trump has been a bit disappointed with him over the SAVE Act.

“I think the president and John like each other. I think these are tough issues and they obviously disagree over things like the filibuster,” Kennedy said.