Instead, the response was cricket.
Ms Collins and Republican Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana explained calmly that Mr Trump had supported a much larger infrastructure plan in the past, but they failed to deliver. Mr Portman, who personally called on Trump to encourage him to support the legislation, politely suggested that Mr Trump change strategy and adopt the plan.
When it came time to vote on whether to move the measure on the Senate floor, a coalition of mostly moderate members found that, contrary to Mr. Trump’s efforts, the number of conservative senators supporting his plan had increased, decreased. No – with members of the Republican leadership, including Mr. McConnell and Missouri Senator Roy Blunt, who is also retiring, joining his ranks.
Republican Senator Kevin Cramer of North Dakota said some of his constituents were “crazy as hell” about their support of the bill — particularly about the idea of doing something that would make President Biden feel good. But instead of following Mr Trump’s lead, he has spoken out on a conservative talk radio show to negotiate the agreement.
“I strongly believe that people – the more they live with it, the more they see it, the more they hear about it, the more they will like it, including conservatives,” said Mr. Kramer. Said.
Several Republican aides said the developments made them feel that Mr Trump’s influence on the Senate had not ended, but had diminished.
In fact, many Republicans said they were surprised by what Mr Trump was trying to say. The former president proposed a $1.5 trillion infrastructure package while in office, so his opposition to a lean bill was driven by either personal squabbles or a simple desire to see his predecessor and opposition party fail.
“It’s really not that clear what Trump’s real objection is here,” said Philip Wallach, a senior fellow at the conservative American Enterprise Institute. “He is certainly not saying that doing infrastructure bills is bad; He spent his entire four years talking about how cool it would be. So that’s really what he’s saying, ‘Working with Democrats is bad.’ And for many of these senators in closely contested states, those who understand their electoral base simply don’t agree that bipartisanship is bad. ”