Newsmax CEO Christopher Ruddy on Sunday defended Majority Leader Mitch McConnell as a "strong conservative," and said President Donald Trump should "rethink" the attacks on the Kentucky Republican.
Ruddy, appearing as a panelist on ABC News "This Week" with George Stephanopoulos, said he had urged the President both "privately and publicly" to "reach out, create a bipartisan consensus like President George W. Bush did" and "get legislation through."
"I think he should rethink the attacks on Senator McConnell," Ruddy said. "The president's biggest accomplishment when you look back is [the nomination of Supreme Court Justice] Neil Gorsuch. Senator McConnell pushed that through."
House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-WI, "gave the president a damaged bill of goods with the healthcare bill," Ruddy added. "There's a lot of angst over that."
When Ruddy was pressed that Trump doesn't appear to have taken his counsel on the McConnell attacks, Ruddy asserted, "The reason is, he's been under such attack by the press."
"No president has ever sustained" such attacks, he said. "People like [California Democratic Rep.] Maxine Waters were calling for his impeachment before he took the oath of office. It's horrific what is going on."
He also pushed back on criticism that Trump has been "dumping a bucket of water on his head and complaining of being wet."
"I would say you and everyone else -- the major media -- are dumping the bucket of water," Ruddy said.
Last week, Trump prodded McConnell for failing to replace Obamacare.
"The only problem I have with Mitch McConnell is that, after hearing Repeal & Replace for 7 years, he failed! That should NEVER have happened!" Trump tweeted.
Trump previously hit back at McConnell for his criticism about the president's "excessive expectations."
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.