The ever-calculating McConnell has responded only indirectly to Brooks and Moore by pumping even more money into his super PAC, the Senate Leadership Fund, which is running ads assailing both of them and backing Strange.* But McConnell threw an elbow in Trump’s direction on Monday, telling an audience in Kentucky that the president had “excessive expectations about how quickly things happen in the democratic process.” He also repeated his criticism of Trump’s Twitter habit. “I think it would be helpful if the president would be a little more on message,” McConnell said.

Though restrained in comparison with some recent GOP critiques of Trump, McConnell’s words infuriated the president’s allies. First it was Sean Hannity:

. @SenateMajLdr No Senator, YOU are a WEAK, SPINELESS leader who does not keep his word and you need to Retire! https://t.co/BL4uf7WLM1… — Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) August 9, 2017

Then on Wednesday morning came Dan Scavino, the combative White House social-media director:

More excuses. @SenateMajLdr must have needed another 4 years - in addition to the 7 years -- to repeal and replace Obamacare..... https://t.co/6FOVBm6BQU — Dan Scavino Jr. (@DanScavino) August 9, 2017

A few hours later, the vacationing president broke away from a potential North Korean nuclear crisis to hit back at McConnell himself:

Senator Mitch McConnell said I had "excessive expectations," but I don't think so. After 7 years of hearing Repeal & Replace, why not done? — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 9, 2017

It’s not clear what Trump’s play is here. If he’d really wanted to go after McConnell, he could have endorsed one of Strange’s challengers in Alabama. Each is vying for Trump’s deep reservoir of support in the state by promising to support his agenda, even if that means standing up to McConnell. Brooks in particular has fans among the immigration hard-liners in the White House, although Strange’s campaign and McConnell’s super PAC have highlighted his criticism of Trump during last year’s election.

But Trump did not endorse him, or Moore. Instead, he did McConnell a huge favor by tweeting his support for Strange on Tuesday evening, a day before going on the attack against the majority leader. The primary is Tuesday, and with polls showing the race up for grabs, there will likely be a run-off between the top two vote-getters, with the winner heavily favored to take the Senate seat in a state that Democrats have shown little sign of contesting.

There’s understandable angst and finger-pointing throughout the Republican Party over the failure of health care, but Trump’s outburst at McConnell is perplexing at a time when both men are trying to regroup for a major push on tax reform in the fall. “It’s short-sighted in the sense that if the president wants to deliver on any of his key campaign promises, he needs Mitch McConnell and Senate Republicans,” said Brian Walsh, a GOP strategist and former top aide at the National Republican Senatorial Committee. “There appears to be no strategy behind these quips from the White House.”