At a political rally in his hometown of Ellisville, Chris McDaniel announced that he will oppose incumbent Senator Roger Wicker in the upcoming GOP primary election.
This will be McDaniel’s second attempt at running for Senate after coming up short in 2014 run-off against Thad Cochran. The state senator has positioned himself as an outsider, and he will apparently do the same this time around as he opened his rally up with the theme music from “Rocky.” In his speech, McDaniel came out strong against Wicker’s voting record and the status quo in Washington.
“50 years ago, Mississippi was economically impoverished and struggling to find its way, but we still are,” McDaniel said. “So, why are we doing it the same old way? Why do you keep sending the same old man to represent you?”
McDaniel went on to say that Mississippians shouldn’t expect new results from the same leadership.
“Why do you think that the same individuals that have been sent there time and time again, decade after decade, they go up there, fall in line with leadership? They’re more concerned with Mitch McConnell than they are you, and they keep voting your people into debt. They keep taking away our civil liberties. At some point, we have to understand that doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results is the classical definition of insanity.
President Trump seemingly took notice of McDaniel’s announcement, and endorsed Wicker, who has worked with the President since his inauguration.
.@SenatorWicker of Mississippi has been a great supporter and incredible help in getting our massive Tax Cut Bill done and approved. Also big help on cutting regs. I am with him in his re-election all the way!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 27, 2018
Wicker’s campaign has received funds from Vice President Mike Pence, and an endorsement from Rick Santorum. According to the Federal Election Commission, Wicker had $4.1 million of campaign funds on hand at the end 2017.
Despite Trump’s support for Wicker, McDaniel says he wants to work with the President on one of his key campaign promises.
“Donald Trump told us he wanted to drain the swamp. I’m going to go there to help him drain the swamp,” McDaniel exclaimed.
He continued to tout his outsider persona by asking his voters what type of leadership they want to represent them.
“This race is a contest between very different views. Do you want a fighter, or do you want somebody weak? Do you want a leader or someone who follows leadership? Do you want a conservative or just one that pretends to be on TV?” McDaniel asked.
Wicker released a statement after McDaniel announced his candidacy, and says that he looks forward to running his campaign based on the record which the candidate criticized.
“Gayle and I are looking forward to this campaign and sharing my record of successfully fighting to reduce job-killing regulations, confirm conservative judges, enact historic tax cuts, rebuild our military, and honor our veterans. We will work hard to once again earn the votes and support of all Mississippians.” – Senator Wicker
In his pre-announcement on Facebook Live earlier this week, McDaniel didn’t shy away those questioning his decision to run stating “we’re looking for a fight. And I can’t wait to have you on my team again.”
During the rally, McDaniel followed that up by saying “some fights are worth having.”
The GOP Primary is set for June 5th.
