McConnell’s criticism of the Republican Party grows louder as the party falls into conflict over Ukraine and immigration issues.

Mitch McConnell has long prided himself on keeping the Republican Party united during his 17-year tenure as Senate Republican leader.

That hardly ever happens anymore.

As the party descends into a heated debate over immigration, a small group of adversaries within the chamber have become louder and more outspoken, mostly on the border, Ukraine and, to a large extent, Donald Trump. is being pushed beyond.

Until now, Republicans’ complaints against Mr. McConnell had mainly been carried out behind closed doors. The information spread to the public as the Kentucky Republican enters what could be his final year as leader.

At least five of his critics have publicly called for new leadership in recent days, even holding a press conference last week calling for his removal, a move unthinkable in years. It highlights that the 118th Congress was arguably McConnell’s most turbulent period. on his conference.

Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, who supports Mr. McConnell, said, “There’s a lot of disagreement even about Mitch remaining in leadership,” and that his public opponents have He pointed out that he was the same as those who criticized him. “Mitch might argue that as much as he has a leadership problem, he also has a followership problem.”

Asked if McConnell should run again for leadership, Cramer said: “He’s the greatest vote-getter in the world, but I don’t know what he wants to do.” What I can’t imagine is why he would want to run again. ”

During his tenure in the Senate, Mr. McConnell has been praised by Republican allies and Democratic adversaries alike as a tactician, always looking ahead to the next election, calculating how to get ahead of his opponents. On Friday, his supporters were quick to woo former Gov. Larry Hogan in Maryland’s Senate race, suddenly turning a safe Democratic seat into a competitive seat and a major boost for Republicans. began to point out these characteristics further.

“This was a big win for good people,” McConnell said Friday, with the big-spending super PAC poised to once again become a major player in a key Senate race. “Having a truly competitive candidate in a blue state like this is a huge step forward.”

But what has caused the most tension within the campaign is Mr. McConnell’s long-running campaign to explicitly support Ukraine with more than billions of dollars, and when Mr. Trump was once president, the 81-year-old Mr. McConnell now remains in the minority in the conference. He is once again pushing the direction of the party, publicly calling on Republicans to remove him as leader.

“The problem with McConnell is that he doesn’t actually talk to or listen to his constituents or his constituents. I don’t think I’ve had a conversation with Mr. McConnell in over a year,” he said. said Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, who has emerged as one of the leading critics. “That person is completely enveloped in a bubble.”

The debate over Mr. McConnell’s leadership was also at issue in a closed-door Republican conference last month, with lawmakers sharply questioning him and debating with colleagues over the best strategy on immigration, and senators He describes the meeting as “robust.” “Genki” and “Ugly”. Mr. McConnell’s critics see his position on Ukraine as inconsistent with the majority of Republican voters in the country and see this as an opportunity to seize his leadership.

Republican Sen. Rand Paul, also from Kentucky and a former close ally of the Republican Party, said, “He was the one who defended sending money to Ukraine at the expense of trying to resolve the border issue first.” I think it was a big mistake.” Although he is the leader, he has been in fierce conflict with him in recent years.

But this is what has Mr. McConnell’s allies and aides angry. Mr. McConnell chose Republican Sen. James Lankford of Oklahoma to terminate a deal that imposed new restrictions on the U.S. border before Republicans themselves greenlighted additional aid to Ukraine. Because they were demanding action.

Mr. Lankford, with help from Mr. McConnell, then terminated the bipartisan agreement after nearly five months of negotiations, forcing the White House to make important concessions. But Republicans, at President Trump’s request, rushed to kill it before fully considering the details.

In the end, Mr. McConnell chose to vote against moving forward with his own version of the deal, with only four Republicans voting to move forward with it.

When asked last week about his response to the incident, McConnell said: “I followed the guidance of the conference that insisted we address this issue in October.”

Some said there was no way around Trump’s opposition, and eventually House Republican leaders came out against the border deal, saying it was too weak. Then, after top House Republicans vowed to end the policy, Republican senators said there was no point in moving forward.

“Donald Trump wanted to repeal the border bill, and I think our party’s base is happy with that,” said one of the four Republicans who voted in favor of moving forward with the border bill. People, Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah said. “We did what Donald Trump wanted.”

With McConnell’s support, the Senate is now taking a different approach. McConnell and 16 other Senate Republicans voted to move forward with a $95.3 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan without any new border policy, with the bill due by the middle of this week. It is expected to pass the House. Two of Mr. McConnell’s potential successors, Sen. John Cornyn of Texas and Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, voted to advance the aid package, while a third, Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming, voted to block the aid package.

McConnell defended his position, saying, “This is about rebuilding the arsenal of democracy and showing allies and adversaries alike that we are serious about exercising American power.” .

But Mr. McConnell’s critics are now calling him out.

Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson, who is calling on McConnell to resign, called the handling of the meeting “horrible.” “He handled this wrong.”

Florida Sen. Rick Scott, who unsuccessfully challenged McConnell for leadership after the 2022 midterm elections, said of Lankford, “He was sent on a suicide mission.”

“(McConnell) designed a process that was doomed to fail. The only outcome it could have produced was a bill that failed to secure the border and at the same time provided political camouflage for Democrats,” he said last week. said Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, who called on McConnell to resign. “Mr. McConnell has effectively just made the largest in-kind contribution in history to the Democratic Senate Committee.”

Asked about Cruz, who has sparred with Republican leaders for years, McConnell quipped: “I think we can all agree that Sen. Cruz is not a fan.”

Mr. Cruz approached Mr. McConnell on the floor Thursday, engaging Mr. McConnell after the Texas Republican attacked him earlier this week. McConnell smiled modestly, clasped his hands in front of him and nodded periodically.

A person familiar with the exchange said that during the conversation, “Mr. Cruz was actually trying to make peace with the leader.” A Cruz spokesperson, like McConnell, declined to comment on the conversation.

“Senator Cruz speaks with his colleagues daily, and his conversations with his fellow senators are confidential,” a spokesman for Mr. Cruz said in a statement.

McConnell has not said whether he intends to remain leader after the 2024 election, promising only that he will remain in the position through the end of this Congress. But many Senate Republicans told CNN that McConnell would likely have support if he chose to remain leader.

“Mitch is the one who brought us all together year after year,” said South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds.

“This is one of the more difficult issues, that’s all, and this is a very important issue that many of us feel very strongly about,” Lowndes said of the fight over immigration and Ukraine. Told.

Asked if he would maintain support if he were to run for leadership again, Lowndes said: “Right now, as of today, I have no doubt that Mitch is the leader and that he will have the support of more than a majority of the council.” he claimed. ”

Mr. McConnell’s supporters say Republican leaders were well aware that they would endure a backlash over their handling of Ukraine, and they are not sure where the Trump wing of the party stands on the issue. Considering.

“He’s always been light-hearted, but as soon as Tucker Carlson and Donald Trump say they don’t want to help Ukraine, a lot of Republicans are going to support them,” Romney said. .

But the two haven’t spoken in more than three years, and Mr. McConnell has backed Trump’s numb criticism over the Jan. 6, 2021, terrorist attacks, especially given that Mr. Not everyone is so confident that McConnell will stay in office if he becomes president. United States Capitol Building.

Alabama Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville, a Trump ally, said “everyone” has concerns about McConnell’s handling of the meeting. “The direction we’ve taken is we have to have leadership.”

“When we come back, there’s going to be a lot of talk about this,” said Tuberville, who has supported Mr. McConnell in the past. “I promise you.”

CNN’s Morgan Rimmer contributed to this report.