Trump endorsed Rep. Alex Mooney after they met at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on Friday, a week after Mooney had voted against the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill. His GOP opponent, Rep. David McKinley, voted for it.
“It seals the deal,” Mooney told CNN, referring to his Trump endorsement.
But McKinley, who has been touting the billions designated for roads and bridges in his state, said on Tuesday that his constituents and county mayors have been clamoring for such a program for years.
“They’ve wanted infrastructure,” McKinley said.
Asked about Trump’s endorsement of Mooney, McKinley said, “I know, I saw that,” and walked into the House chamber.
The infrastructure law has divided the Republican Party, pitting business-minded Republicans like McKinley against Trump and allied outside groups, who haven’t wanted to give President Joe Biden a bipartisan accomplishment as he struggles in the polls.
It has also become the latest proxy war in the battle over Trumpism in the GOP, with Trump and his hardcore supporters vowing revenge against the Republicans who helped turn the measure into law — a victory that eluded Trump during his own presidency.
The bill had split the top Republicans on the Hill, with Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell among the 19 GOP senators to vote for it, while House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy actively lobbied his colleagues to try to kill it.
“Seventy-five percent of the American people support infrastructure, unlike the other issues we’re talking about,” McConnell said Tuesday. “From a Kentucky point of view, it was extremely good for our state. I’m proud of my vote.”
A study in contrasts
In West Virginia, the contrasts between the two candidates are sharp.
It’s unclear whether either man will pull any punches while campaigning against their colleague. In a brief interview, Mooney said he is “just going to run for the position.”
But Trump’s involvement could turbocharge the fight. The political arm for the House Freedom Caucus is officially backing Mooney and took a swipe at McKinley in a statement, calling him a “Beltway moderate who voted to create Nancy Pelosi’s January 6 witch hunt.”
Read More: Trump’s revenge tour on infrastructure vote splits Republicans in