Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel worries President Donald Trump’s most fervent supporters won’t turn out to vote in the 2018 midterm elections because “they feel like Congress isn’t supporting this president,” McDaniel said Monday on “The Laura Ingraham Show.”

With the midterm elections a little more than six months away, Republican candidates are looking to sell their platform to the voters who elected Trump and a GOP congressional majority in 2016. Although GOP lawmakers passed historic tax cuts in December, the congressional party has struggled to overcome unprecedented legislative delay and obstruction tactics by Democrats.

“I am concerned because the most engaged base of our party are the Trump supporters. And they do not always translate into coming out for elections if they feel like Congress isn’t supporting this president,” McDaniel told host Laura Ingraham.

“So we need to engage them, and we need to show that we’re supporting this president and his agenda,” McDaniel continued. “I think, by and large, that’s what’s happening with the tax cuts, the deregulation. But we need to show that to these voters, that we support our president.”

Another “huge issue” that concerns McDaniel and the GOP at large is the Senate’s slow-walking of Trump’s nominees for key positions in government. McDaniel said that she has spoken specifically with several GOP senators about the necessity of confirming Trump’s nominees.

“We do need to get our ambassadors confirmed. We need to get some of these high-level staff confirmed, and the Democrats are using these procedures to slow down the process. They’re playing out the clock because they want to make sure that we have a nonfunctioning government,” McDaniel said.

“It’s really a shame that they’re doing this to the American people,” McDaniel continued. “I mean, you look at [Secretary of State nominee Mike] Pompeo right now — he’s not going to come out of the committee. He won 14 Democrat votes when he was confirmed as CIA director. And now those Democrats are walking away.”

But one GOPer, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, is also refusing to support Pompeo. Although the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is set to vote on recommending Pompeo for the full Senate’s consideration Monday, it is likely that Pompeo won’t garner enough votes in the committee to win its recommendation.

“Hard to believe Obstructionists May vote against Mike Pompeo for Secretary of State,” Trump tweeted Monday. “The Dems will not approve hundreds of good people, including the Ambassador to Germany. They are maxing out the time on approval process for all, never happened before. Need more Republicans!”

Who do you think would win the Presidency?

By completing the poll, you agree to receive emails from LifeZette, occasional offers from our partners and that you've read and agree to our privacy policy and legal statement.

McDaniel said that the Senate’s slow-walking “is hurting the country,” noting that it’s time to put vulnerable Democrats up for Senate re-election in red states in 2018 “on notice.”

“So put Heidi Heitkamp [D-N.D.] on notice. Put Joe Donnelly [D-Ind.], put Joe Manchin [D-W.Va.], put Jon Tester [D-Mont.]) — put these Democrats in these red states in the position we’re they’re going to have to respond to their constituents as to why they’re shutting down our government and shutting down for debate or votes on people who have regularly gone through in other administrations,” McDaniel said.

Related: Barrasso Says Pompeo Opposition Is All About the ‘Resistance’

“It’s truly shameful what’s happening in the Senate with this slowdown of really key positions like the president said,” McDaniel said. “Our country’s at stake here.”

Although McDaniel urged GOP lawmakers to support Trump’s policies and carry out the voters’ wishes, she also offered some harsh words for Trump voters planning to opt out of voting in the midterm elections.

“I would ask any Republican, ‘If you are not out there fighting for every single nominee in your state, then you are on the other team right now. And you have got to get out and help our candidates because this is our country that’s at stake. And get over any personal issues that you may have. Are you a Republican, or are you a Democrat?'” McDaniel said.

PoliZette writer Kathryn Blackhurst can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter.

(photo credit, homepage and article images: Ronna McDaniel [1], [2], CC BY-SA 2.0, by Gage Skidmore)