GOP senator: Moore’s defeat was ‘a great night for America’

Republican Sen. Bob Corker (Tenn.), a frequent critic of President Trump, on Wednesday reportedly celebrated the defeat of GOP Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore in the state’s special election.

NBC News’s Frank Thorp reported that Corker called Moore’s election night defeat “a great night for America” after being asked about the race by reporters.

CORKER says Doug Jones winning last night was “A great night for America…”

— Frank Thorp V (@frankthorp) December 13, 2017

Moore was defeated by Democrat Doug Jones in deep-red Alabama Tuesday night after months of national attention on the state’s special election. During the campaign, multiple women came forward to accuse Moore of pursuing relationship with them when they were girls as young as 14 and he was in his 30s.

Moore has denied any sexual misconduct.

{mosads}Corker, who has announced he is retiring from the Senate after 2018, was an early critic of Moore in the GOP, and he endorsed Jones for office despite Moore’s endorsements from President Trump and the Republican National Committee.

In November, Corker tweeted that even before the allegations of sexual misconduct surfaced, Moore was unfit for office.

Look, I’m sorry, but even before these reports surfaced, Roy Moore’s nomination was a bridge too far.

— Senator Bob Corker (@SenBobCorker) November 11, 2017

Jones won Tuesday’s election by just more than 20,000 votes, or about 1.5. percentage points, according to results available Wednesday morning. He will likely be seated next year.