Perpetual GOP malcontent Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) called lawmakers “stupid” who believed invoking the so-called “nuclear option” to confirm Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court would ultimately improve the Senate, during a gaggle with reporters Tuesday.

McCain, a vocal and frequent critic of President Donald Trump, supports the president’s Supreme Court nominee and announced Monday that he would reluctantly back the use of the “nuclear option” to change Senate rules to require a simple majority of 50 votes to confirm Gorsuch.

“And they’re stupid and they’ve deceived their voters because they’re so stupid.”

The Arizona senator was prompted Tuesday by an unidentified reporter to react to individuals who say “the Senate will be a better place” after the nuclear option is invoked.

“I would like to meet that idiot,” McCain fired back, “I would like to meet that numbskull that would say that, that after 200 years — at least 100 years  — of this tradition where the Senate has functioned pretty well, they think it’d be a good idea to blow it up.”

The reporter began his line of questioning again, only to have McCain swiftly interrupt him once more.

“Idiot. Whoever says that is a stupid idiot who has not been here and seen what I’ve been through and how we were able to avoid that on several occasions,” McCain insisted. “And they’re stupid and they’ve deceived their voters because they’re so stupid.”

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Traditionally, a Supreme Court nominee required a bipartisan majority of 60 Senate votes to be confirmed. Only three of the 48 Senate Democrats announced their support for Gorsuch: Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.), Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.), and Joe Donnelly (D-Ind.).

With just 52 Senate Republicans, Gorsuch needed eight Democratic senators to vote for him in order to be confirmed.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has made clear Republicans will confirm Gorsuch despite the obstruction from Democrats.