Forget the 'Three Johns,' It Might Be a Steve

Prior to Thursday, the smart money in DC was that one of "three Johns" would take over Mitch McConnell's leadership position in the Senate in January. But now it appears that a "Steve" might be a top contender—Montana Sen. Steve Daines. And the reason is Donald Trump.

• Trump is encouraging Daines to run for the post, reports Politico, adding that the development "significantly" alters the race. It's also bad news for the trio of Johns—Thune, Cornyn, and Barrasso.
• Axios reports that Trump has been "quietly" campaigning for Daines, and he began even before McConnell announced his impending departure from the post. Daines is a Trump supporter who was one of the first senators to endorse the former president's 2024 run.

• However, it's unclear whether Daines himself is eager to take the role. He chairs the Senate Republicans' campaign arm, and Axios quotes an unnamed source who says that the senator "appreciates the president's support but needs to focus on taking back the Senate" in November.
• Daines is described as a hard-right conservative who is a "master at appearing" moderate by Daily Montanan columnist Darrell Ehrlick. "If Steve Daines has a superpower, it's that he seems affable enough, on the rare occasion of him being spotted in public in Montana, and that most people can't say much about him, except that he's Republican," writes Ehrlick.

(More Steve Daines stories.)