Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, has criticized a McConnell-aligned super PAC, accusing it of withholding financial support in his competitive reelection race and using its resources to punish those who challenge the Senate GOP leadership.
Cruz has publicly expressed frustration with the Senate Leadership Fund (SLF), a super PAC closely aligned with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., for not spending any money on his closely contested reelection race. Cruz, a prominent figure in conservative politics, has accused McConnell of using the PAC to reward compliant senators while penalizing those who oppose his leadership.
"Mitch McConnell runs the largest Republican super PAC in the country and has $400 million, but that super PAC is used to reward the Republican senators who obey him and to punish those who dare to stand up to him," Cruz said during a recent interview with conservative commentator Mark Levin, the host of "Life, Liberty and Levin" on Fox Nation.
When asked if McConnell or the PAC had contributed financially to his race against Democrat Senate candidate Colin Allred, Cruz responded bluntly, "Not a penny."
This is not the first time Cruz has faced a lack of financial backing from McConnell's super PAC. He recalled a similar situation in 2018 when he narrowly defeated Democrat challenger Beto O'Rourke in the most expensive Senate race in U.S. history. Despite being outspent three-to-one, Cruz said, "McConnell spent zero in Texas. I won anyway but barely, by less than three points."
Cruz is again facing a well-funded opponent in Allred, with the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) announcing a multimillion-dollar ad campaign against him. Cruz noted that despite significant spending by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., the SLF remains inactive in Texas.
The Texas senator attributes the lack of support to his ongoing battles with McConnell, most recently over a bipartisan border security deal that McConnell helped negotiate. "People wonder at home, 'How come no Republicans stand up and have courage and stand up to Mitch and leadership?' The answer is if you stand up and say 'no,' it costs you $10 or $20 or $30 million," Cruz stated.
Although McConnell is legally prohibited from directly influencing the spending decisions of the SLF, he has raised more than $1 billion for the group since its inception. Many Republican senators believe he exerts substantial influence over its allocation of funds, with Steven Law, McConnell's former chief of staff, serving as the CEO of the Senate Leadership Fund.
In previous comments to The Hill, McConnell denied playing favorites when deciding which candidates to support, emphasizing that his goal is to secure a Republican majority in the Senate.
Despite this, Cruz pointed out that McConnell's super PAC did not offer financial support to other critics of McConnell, such as Sens. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., and Mike Lee, R-Utah, in their respective races in 2016 and 2022.