The issue came back to the fore last month, when McConnell acknowledged that "candidate quality" could hurt the party's ability to take back the chamber. The comments were in line with comments the GOP leader had been making for years about Senate races, but it was interpreted as a dig at some of the lackluster performances of the GOP field so far.

Last week, Scott fired back. He told Politico that he and McConnell "clearly have a strategic disagreement" over the party's candidates. The Florida Republican also wrote an op-ed in the Washington Examiner, lashing unnamed Republicans for acting "treasonous to the conservative cause."

"Unfortunately, many of the very people responsible for losing the Senate last cycle are now trying to stop us from winning the majority this time by trash-talking our Republican candidates," Scott wrote.

While Scott did not mention McConnell by name, his op-ed was widely viewed as a broadside launched against the GOP leader and his allies.

The issue came back to the fore last month, when McConnell acknowledged that "candidate quality" could hurt the party's ability to take back the chamber. The comments were in line with comments the GOP leader had been making for years about Senate races, but it was interpreted as a dig at some of the lackluster performances of the GOP field so far.

Last week, Scott fired back. He told Politico that he and McConnell "clearly have a strategic disagreement" over the party's candidates. The Florida Republican also wrote an op-ed in the Washington Examiner, lashing unnamed Republicans for acting "treasonous to the conservative cause."

"Unfortunately, many of the very people responsible for losing the Senate last cycle are now trying to stop us from winning the majority this time by trash-talking our Republican candidates," Scott wrote.

While Scott did not mention McConnell by name, his op-ed was widely viewed as a broadside launched against the GOP leader and his allies.