First appearance on Fox: Sen. Kevin Cramer (RN.D.) is scheduled to vote for Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R.S.D.) in the first secret ballot of the leadership campaign Wednesday morning.
“I told both Rick Scott and John Cornyn today that I would cast my first vote for John Thune,” the North Dakota senator said in an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital.
Thune is competing with Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Rick Scott (R-Florida) to replace Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) as Senate Republican leader. ) is in dispute. McConnell is the longest-serving leader in Senate history.
“Mr. Thune has never lied to me,” Mr. Kramer said of the party's leadership candidate. “I can't say that for everyone.”
Despite this comment, he insisted there were no “enemies” within the conference and said it was a “good group”.
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Kevin Cramer is the latest Republican to publicly endorse Thune. (Reuters)
He said showing support is “the way to make that happen.” “There are 53 of us. We were all aspiring to positions of influence, so it seems kind of cowardly to appear neutral.”
The senator cited their long history, both from the Dakotas, as a reason for supporting Thune. “Basically, I've known John Thune since I was a kid,” he said, referring to the 1990 election cycle when he was a Republican director in both North Dakota and South Dakota. .
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Republican Sen. John Thune of South Dakota speaks during a press conference after the Senate Republican Policy Luncheon at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, Dec. 7, 2021, in Washington. (Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“Of course all four of us at Dakota State support him,” he added. Thune and Sen. Mike Rounds (D) have publicly supported the former, but Sen. John Hoeven (D) has not publicly endorsed it.
Hoeven's office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
“So John and I have a long personal relationship. He's a good friend. He's from the neighborhood,” Kramer said.
North Dakota Republicans say they believe the leadership race should proceed to a second secret ballot because a candidate would need to reach 27 votes to win.
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Sens. John Thune, John Cornyn, and Rick Scott are among the candidates in the race to succeed Mitch McConnell as leader. (Getty Images)
“Everyone has an opinion,” Cramer said of Scott's high-profile endorsement from an outsider who frequently works with President-elect Donald Trump. There are people within my party who want me to do that.” This and that. ”
However, he emphasized that the Republican conference as a whole is in line with President Trump's ideas. “I supported Donald Trump, and Donald Trump supported me,” the senator said.
”[W]Literally when it comes to governance issues, we are all on the same team. The Republican majority in the Senate is up to a T, consistent with Donald Trump's policies. ”
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Scott has received multiple endorsements from Trump supporters. (Reuters)
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It is noteworthy that President Trump has not endorsed any leadership candidates, despite pressure from those close to him, including billionaire X owner Elon Musk.
Thune is also endorsed by Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.). Mr. Cornyn has recently been endorsed by Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Missouri), and Mr. Scott has been endorsed by Sens. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Rand Paul (R-Ky.), It is supported by Sens. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Tommy Tuberville. Marco Rubio, Republican of Alabama and Republican of Florida.
