Conservatives are complaining that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is wielding too much power over fundraising after reports that the Senate Leadership Fund, a powerful fundraising group affiliated with him, is not helping two of his biggest critics, GOP Sens. Ted Cruz and Rick Scott, with their reelection campaigns.
In particular, they fear that Cruz, R-Texas, will be outspent by his Democrat opponent, Texas Rep. Colin Allred, reported The Hill.
"It's been well-known for over a decade, that since SLF has started, McConnell has used it to reward his allies and punish conservatives," a conservative strategist commented. "And it's never been more apparent than this year, when two of the strongest allies of President Trump, Sen. Rick Scott and Sen. Ted Cruz, are being left to fight for their reelection on their own."
The news comes as Democrats shift spending to Texas and Florida, where Scott is facing a challenge from former Democrat Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell.
The Senate's fundraising arm has spent $3 million in coordinated expenditures with the Cruz campaign on television advertising already while transferring $2.5 million to the Texas Republican Party.
Strategists are also questioning if the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) headed by Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., a member of McConnell's leadership team, is doing enough to protect Cruz, Scott, and other GOP incumbents.
Steven Law, the CEO of the SLF and One Nation, another fundraising group aligned with McConnell, told The Wall Street Journal that he is not worried that Cruz or Scott will lose.
"If it gets tough, we'll be there for them," said Law, a former chief of staff for McConnell.
Meanwhile, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee announced this week that it plans to spend millions of dollars on a TV ad buy to urge Democrats to donate more money toward defeating Cruz and Scott after the committee had been expected to stay out of their states.
Another GOP strategist said that McConnell likes reminding senators about how much the SLF helped them win their races.
This includes Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., when the senator proposed a bill limiting corporate political giving.
McConnell warned GOP senators Tuesday that they face "incoming" from the "center-right" if they supported Hawley's legislation. He also listed senators who got substantial support from the SLF, CNN reports.
Earlier this year, McConnell denied that he plays favorites when deciding which candidates to support, telling The Hill that he uses calculations that depend on winning and preserving majorities in the Senate.
He also denied that he influences the spending decisions of the SLF and One Nation, but critics say he signals his preferences and sticks within campaign finance requirements.
McConnell, meanwhile, is a fundraising champion, bringing in more than $1 billion for the SLF since the group started.
Earlier this year, Cruz led in calls for McConnell to step down as the party's leader in the Senate.
"I think a Republican leader should actually lead this conference and should advance the priorities of Republicans," Cruz said in February.
Cruz and McConnell had butted heads many times before, including in 2013 when Cruz's push to repeal Obamacare led to a government shutdown.