Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., spoke positively of his former opponent Linda McMahon, saying she is "unquestionably qualified" to lead the Small Business Administration.
"I ran against her in 2012," Murphy said Thursday on MSNBC. "She wasn't very nice to me in that campaign. I've forgiven.
"And she's unquestionably qualified for this job. She turned a small business into a big multinational business, which is what a lot of small businesses want to become. She's a Connecticut Republican, not an Oklahoma Republican; she's bringing some important moderate values to the administration."
McMahon, who co-founded the wrestling franchise WWE, ran twice for Senate in Connecticut, first against Richard Blumenthal in 2010, then against Murphy. McMahon lost both bids, despite spending roughly $100 million of her own money.
"Linda is going to be a phenomenal leader and champion for small businesses and unleash America's entrepreneurial spirit all across the country," President-elect Donald Trump said in a statement Wednesday, according to the AP.
"As an entrepreneur myself, I have shared the experiences of our nation's small business owners and will do my best to advocate on their behalf," McMahon said in a statement of her own, also reported by AP. "My husband and I built our business from scratch, building it to a publicly traded global enterprise with more than 800 employees."
"I think of all of the potential picks for the head of the SBA, Linda McMahon would be at the top of my list," Murphy said, "and I'll be supporting her when she comes before the senate."
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