McConnell: 'A Little Less Drama' from White House, Please

WASHINGTON — The GOP chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee accused the White House on Monday night of being in a “downward spiral,” with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) acknowledging this morning that lawmakers want a “little less drama” out of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

“The White House has got to do something soon to bring itself under control and in order. It’s got to happen,” Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) told Bloomberg after news broke of President Trump allegedly sharing highly classified information from an intelligence partner with Russian officials in the Oval Office. Trump tweeted today that he had an “absolute right” to share information with Russians, without noting whether the information he shared was classified.

“Obviously they’re in a downward spiral right now and they’ve got to figure out a way to come to grips [with] all that’s happening,” the chairman added.

McConnell told Bloomberg this morning he read the Washington Post story and the response from National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster “which tends to refute the story, rebut the story.”

“I think we could do with a little less drama from the White House on a lot of things, so that we could focus on our agenda, which is deregulation, tax reform, and repealing and replacing Obamacare,” McConnell added.

Asked if he’d spoken with Trump since last night, the majority leader responded, “I speak with him frequently.”

With the next potential government shutdown looming in September, McConnell added that Trump budget request was just that: a request.

“Well, we generally, no matter who the president is, generally don’t pay too much attention to the president’s budget. But we share some of his priorities,” he said. “I think plussing of defense is something all Republicans think is important.”