I was wondering HOW McConnell got to be him....what kind of challengers did his magnificent charisma
So, this morning I was wondering HOW McConnell got to be him....what kind of challengers did his magnificent charisma defeat, etc....didn't find much....sorry...
Early Years and Education
Addison Mitchell McConnell Jr. was born on February 20, 1942, in Sheffield, Alabama. After contracting polio at age 2, he recovered through his mother's vigorous therapy sessions, even developing into a talented baseball player.
A new job for Addison Sr. brought the family to Louisville, Kentucky, where McConnell became student body president at duPont Manual High School. He held the same role at the University of Louisville, before graduating with honors in 1964 with a B.A. in history, and earning his J.D. in 1967 from the University of Kentucky College of Law.
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Early Political Career
Setting his sights on a career in politics, McConnell interned for Kentucky Congressman Gene Snyder and Senator John Sherman Cooper in the mid-1960s. He served as chief legislative assistant for Senator Marlow Cook after law school, and later became a deputy assistant attorney general to President Gerald Ford.
In 1977, McConnell earned his first elected seat as judge-executive of Kentucky's Jefferson County. A moderate Republican early in his career, he supported collective bargaining rights for public employees and steered federal funds toward the expansion of Jefferson Memorial Forest.
In 1984, McConnell edged out Walter D. Huddleston for a seat in the Senate, making him the only Republican in the country to defeat an incumbent Democratic senator that year, as well as the first of his party to win a statewide race since 1968.
U.S. Senator
During his first term in the Senate, McConnell earned a spot on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and advocated for tax reform. Gaining traction after his reelection in 1990, he became known for his opposition to campaign-finance reform, and successfully spearheaded an effort to block legislation on that front in 1994.
Named chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee in 1996, McConnell continued to buck the tide at opportune moments. He sued the Federal Election Commission following the passage of the bipartisan McCain-Feingold Act in 2002, and in 2006 he opposed a constitutional amendment to ban the desecration of the American flag.
By then, the junior Kentucky senator had earned renown for his political cunning and ability to forge coalitions. He was voted party whip in 2002, and four years later he took over as Senate minority leader.
Republican Leader
As the Senate's top Republican, McConnell rejected the Democratic push for establishing a timetable to withdraw troops from Iraq. In late 2008, he threw his support behind the Troubled Asset Relief Program, signed into law by outgoing President George W. Bush.
With the 2008 election of President Barack Obama giving Democrats control of the White House and both branches of Congress, McConnell focused on obstructing the new commander-in-chief whenever possible. Most notably, he opposed the passage of the economic stimulus package, known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, and the health insurance reform package, the Affordable Care Act (also known as "Obamacare"
in 2010. Additionally, he has stood against the closing of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, delayed approval of Obama's judicial nominees, and a host of other legislation put forth during the Obama administration. Making his party's strategy explicit in a 2010 interview with the National Journal, he stated: "The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president."
While McConnell didn't achieve that goal, he saw gains with the Republican takeover of the House in 2010.
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That was a mere co-incidence - I associate 'Where's the beef' more with Mondale than with Wendy's . I love to follow the money. You need more details on the money he married. 
I only made the connection when you wrote clever so I can't claim credit