On Tuesday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) became the highest-ranking Republican elected official to criticize the RNC for the resolution censuring Cheney and Kinzinger for serving on the House panel investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob.

McConnell described the attack as a “violent insurrection for the purpose of trying to prevent the peaceful transfer of power, after a legitimately-certified election, from one administration to the next.”

“The issue is whether or not the RNC should be sort of singling out members of our party who may have different views from the majority. That’s not the job of the RNC,” he said.

Several other Senate Republicans similarly voiced disapproval of the censure resolution. Some, such as Sen. Susan Collins (Maine), said it was “absurd” for the RNC to defend the events of Jan. 6 as “legitimate political discourse.”

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Members of the RNC voted overwhelmingly for the resolution by voice vote Friday, with only a smattering of “no” votes, highlighting the divide between the party’s elite and grass roots. Former president Donald Trump called McDaniel on Saturday to congratulate her on the resolution, a person familiar with the matter said.

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The resolution denounces the House committee’s investigation as “a Democrat-led persecution of ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate political discourse” and states that the behavior of Cheney and Kinzinger “has been destructive to the institution of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Republican Party and our republic.”

“Every moment that is spent re-litigating a lost election or defending those who have been convicted of criminal behavior moves us further away from the goal of victory this fall,” Collins told reporters at the Capitol.

Republicans are growing increasingly frustrated by former President Trump’s renewed focus on the Jan. 6, 2021, riot on Capitol Hill, worried that it could throw a wrench into their midterm plans as they seek to retake Congress.

Barely over a month ago, Trump was talking up his administration’s success with the coronavirus vaccines. But in recent weeks he tacked back to focusing on the 2020 election and the insurrection, claiming former Vice President Mike Pence could have “overturned” the election and floating pardons for the rioters.

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Republicans for more than a year have grimaced over Trump’s rhetoric surrounding the Capitol riot, which unsuccessfully sought to overturn President Biden’s 2020 victory. But Trump has doubled down in recent weeks on his bombast.