Sunday Morning Edition: A Story About Stevie & Mitch As Told From Main Street Rocky Mount, NC

I watched my friend, Senator Mitch McConnell, disappear before my eyes during a news conference. The young man, fresh from Law School, who stood in my kitchen talking Republican politics went silent. I reached out my hand to him, but of course, I could do nothing. An article said:

WASHINGTON — Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell briefly left his own press conference Wednesday after stopping his remarks mid-sentence and staring off into space for several seconds. McConnell approached the podium for his weekly press conference and began speaking about the annual defense bill on the floor, which he said was proceeding with “good bipartisan cooperation.” The Kentucky senator then appeared to freeze up and stared vacantly for around 20 seconds before his colleague in Republican leadership, who were standing behind him grabbed his elbows and asked if he wanted to go back to his office. Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso, a former orthopedic surgeon who is the No. 3 Republican in the Senate, gently took the situation in hand and helped the Senator leave the podium. The Senator later returned and answered questions.

Stevie is a nickname for Stepheny and I was called this growing up into my thirties. Today, old friends and family still call me Stevie. Mitch does. When Marlow Cook of Louisville, KY. became the junior senator and went to Washington, Mitch went with him. I had been county chairwomen for Marlow’s campaign in Davis County, Mitch on the campaign staff. I flew to Washington to hear Senator Cook’s maiden speech on the floor of the Senate. Mitch picked me up at the airport and provided a quick tour by car to see some of the iconic Washington Government scenes.

I know most of you haven’t paid attention to Senator McConnell’s career. Democrats may dismiss him out of hand, and certainly the media has done their duty to discredit his accomplishments. But, he has stayed the course, been apart of the politics of our times, has helped choreograph the political backdrop that is our history. I can recommend his book, The Long Game, to support his significance. A book blurb tells you more.

Under Mitch McConnell’s famously quiet and strategic leadership, Republicans in the Senate have seen win after win—from tax cuts and deregulation to major improvements for veterans, farmers, and our national defense. In 2018, President Donald Trump dubbed McConnell “the greatest leader in history”—and even his harshest critics on the Left acknowledge his skill. (What else would you expect from President Trump with his ability to go high or low.)

Now with a new foreword by President Trump and an afterword that details McConnell’s friendship with Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, this paperback edition of McConnell’s memoir reveals the backdrop of his decision not to fill Scalia’s vacant seat until after the 2016 presidential election. Of this decision, New York Times chief Washington correspondent Carl Hulse wrote that “McConnell not only preserved a Supreme Court seat, he elected Donald Trump president.”

The years of the McConnell-led Senate have proved that lasting change can only be won by playing the long game. Leading up to the 2020 election, when the system of government our Founding Fathers created will again be threatened by the Left, this book is necessary reading for anyone who wants to avoid repeating the mistakes of our recent past.

May we all have a ‘Senator John Barrasso’ at our side should we need him. There are more stories to tell, but in my shock that I must have grown older, I leave this one. I had a first life, the father of my three children remains in Louisville, Kentucky. He ran into Mitch and told me that the first thing Mitch asked was “How’s Stevie?” In my case, it is memories of the Fort Thomas, KY boy who grew up to be a Senate Republican Leader. In your case, honor someone in your heart that has been a part of your story.