Rick Scott meets with Trump amid rumors of possible Senate GOP leader run

Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) met with former President Trump on Monday night, amid rumors that the Florida Republican might launch a bid to succeed Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who recently announced he would step down from the post in November.

“Great to see President Trump tonight! We’re going to continue working together to win big in 2024 and fix Washington,” Scott wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.

Scott posted a photo with Trump in which the former president was giving a thumbs-up to the camera.

The meeting comes as the race for the next Senate Republican leader officially takes off.

On Friday, Scott said he was “seriously considering a run” for the Senate GOP leader in an interview on “The Charlie Kirk Show.”

“We could actually have somebody that actually believes in this country and believes in solving the problems of this country running the Senate when we get a majority in November,” Scott said on the podcast. “We could make big change.”

Two candidates have already announced their bid for the important position — Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) and Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) — both seen as traditional Republicans and serious legislators.

In 2022, Scott launched a challenge to McConnell’s reelection bid. Trump backed the challenge, but Scott ultimately lost by a vote of 37-10. Votes are cast by secret ballot, and only members of the Senate Republican Conference are allowed to vote.