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Republican Senator Refuses to Acknowledge Trump as Head of the Party

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Despite Trump’s early 2024 campaign announcement, Republican senators are wary of dubbing him the current “leader” of the Party.

Over the weekend, Bill Cassidy (R-LA) was especially harsh on the former president and rejected Trump as the leader of the Republican Party and said the GOP could shift away from his influence in the future.

According to The Hill, Cassidy told CNN’s Pamela Brown that despite polls indicating Trump as the top candidate to receive the Party’s nomination he thinks Republicans should support someone else.

“The Republican Party does not have a president in office right now,” Cassidy said. “It does not have anybody who’s obviously not my leader.”

Cassidy on Saturday echoed other Republicans in calling for the party to “speak about the future” rather than fixating on issues in the past.

“We’re led by principles. We’re led by kind of concepts,” Cassidy said. “A right-of-center party which thinks that smaller government, that individual responsibility, that free markets is more likely to bring prosperity to a family and prosperity to our country. … If we are responsible to those principles, then we win.”

Cassidy has been critical of Trump over the years, even voting to impeach the former president in 2021.

According to Politico, some Republican lawmakers are holding out hope South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott launches a White House bid in 2024.

Joni Ernst is “very excited” about a potential Tim Scott presidential run. John Cornyn would “advise him to go for it.” And John Barrasso said it “doesn’t get any better than Tim Scott.”

Even Sen. Lindsey Graham, who spent much of Donald Trump’s presidency sticking to his side, said he’s intrigued by the possibility of a Scott presidential bid in 2024 and wants to see “what Tim does” before he makes any endorsements.

Scott would “bring something to the table on day one,” Graham said, adding his South Carolina colleague has “one of the most compelling stories of any Republican out there.”

Marianne Williamson Teases 2024 Biden Primary Rematch

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Marianne Williamson via Gage Skidmore Flickr

It’s not just Republicans who have their eyes on unseating President Joe Biden…

Former presidential candidate Marianne Williamson, 70, teased a rematch against Biden.

Williamson, a progressive activist, went viral during the 2020 presidential debates but dropped out before voting started. Williamson eventually endorsed Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) for president.

Williamson plans to make an “important announcement” on March 4.

She told POLITICO on Friday that she took issue with Biden running on the economy, saying such a campaign speaks to the “disconnect” between party elites and the American people. Her campaign strategy, she said, would be to “tell the truth.”

When Williamson was asked bluntly on Friday about critics who say she has “no conceivable path forward” and another campaign would simply be a “vanity project,” the would-be candidate invoked other movements throughout American history. 

“Abolitionists would not have thought that abolishing slavery was possible,” Williamson said. “The suffragists would have had days when they didn’t think women’s suffrage was possible. Civil rights workers would have thought that desegregation wasn’t possible.”

“As America gears up for the 2024 presidential election, I’m preparing an important announcement on March 4th in Washington DC,” Williamson said. 

Williamson rose to prominence as the author of 14 self-help books who made regular appearances on the Oprah Winfrey show. She ran a failed independent House campaign in 2014.

Williamson’s entrance into the 2024 primary field would mark the first Democrat to openly challenge President Biden’s second term.

Florida Lawmaker Makes Announcement on 2024 Plans

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Photo via Gage Skidmore Flickr

Florida Senator Rick Scott (R) is shutting down speculation of a White House run…at least for 2024.

On Wednesday, Sen. Scott announced he will seek another term in the Senate in 2024. According to The Hill, the Florida Senator announced his intentions during an appearance in South Florida and also unveiled a list of hires that includes several longtime campaign hands. 

“I’ve never lost an election and I don’t intend to now,” Scott said in a statement. “We’ve worked hard to turn Florida into a red state that elects Republicans up and down the ballot. But I never take anything for granted.”

“The people of Florida have elected me three times so far to fight for conservative values, stand up to Joe Biden and the radical, woke Democrats, and bring common-sense to Washington. We’re going to keep fighting to do the things the people of Florida elected me to do.”

The Senator’s announcement comes after Republicans failed to win back the upper chamber last year, a failure that some blamed on Scott.

Despite the GOP’s unsuccessful effort to win back the Senate majority, the Florida Senator launched an unsuccessful bid to unseat Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) as Senate minority leader.

Scott remains a powerful political force in his home state. Prior to winning his Senate seat in 2018, he served two terms as Florida governor. 

Amanda Head: Are You on the #TrumpTrain for 2024?

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Donald Trump officially kicked off this third presidential campaign while delivering a speech Tuesday evening from his Mar-a-Lago resort.

Are you all in on Trump 2024 or keeping your options open?

Watch Amanda break it down below.

Bernie Sanders Mulling 2024 Run if Biden Steps Aside

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A top aide to Vermont Socialist Senator Bernie Sanders (I) says the senior lawmaker would “seriously” consider mounting a third presidential campaign if Joe Biden decides not to pursue a second term in the White House.

Sanders, 81, ran for president as a Democrat in 2016 and 2020, losing the nomination to Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden respectively.

“I assume that he would give it a hard look,” longtime Sanders adviser Faiz Shakir told CBS News on Thursday. “I don’t want to make the judgment for him. Obviously, it would be his choice to make. But I assume that he would want to reevaluate it.” 

If Sanders to win the presidency in 2024, he would be 83 years old upon assuming office. Shakir said Sanders is “very aware that he’s older now, and he’d have to make a real judgment about his own vigor and his stamina and his desire and hunger and passion to do this a third time.”

“But if it were an open field? Yeah, I’m confident he would take another look at it and say, ‘Do I want to do this or not?'” he added.  

“Personally, I take President Biden at his word and our orbit takes him at his word that he’s taking it seriously and presume that he is leaning toward yes,” Shakir said. 

However, some Democrats have noted their interest in pursing the office regardless if Biden seeks a second term, concerned he can’t defeat Trump a second time.

Trump Speaks Out On Potential DeSantis Matchup

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Donald Trump isn’t concerned about challengers…

According to The Hill, during an interview with David Brody on “The Water Cooler” Trump struck a confident tone when asked if it would be a “bad move” for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to enter the presidential campaign field.

“So you know, now I hear he might want to run against me. So we’ll handle that the way I handle things,” Trump said in part after boasting about his endorsement of DeSantis’s first successful gubernatorial campaign.

DeSantis has yet to formally announce any future campaign plans or indicate a strong interest in squaring off against Trump in 2024.

However, numerous recent polls have shown DeSantis beating Trump in hypothetical match-ups.

The USA Today- Suffolk University poll reported that 56 percent of Republican and Republican-leaning voters prefer DeSantis, while only 33 percent would support Trump. More than 60 percent said they want a nominee who will continue Trump’s policies but is not Trump, while 31 percent want the former president to run, according to The Hill.

Trump Awards New Hampshire Republican Last-minute Endorsement

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Donald Trump via Gage Skidmore Flickr

New Hampshire Republican Senate candidate Don Bolduc received a late-night endorsement from former President Donald Trump but not before taking a swipe at him

“General Don Bolduc has run a great campaign to be the U.S. Senator from the beautiful State of New Hampshire. He was a strong and proud “Election Denier,” a big reason that he won the Nomination, but he then disavowed. He has since come back, at least on busing, but that is only a small part of N.H. Election Fraud. Nevertheless, Don Bolduc has asked for my Endorsement, and he’s got it, Complete & Total. His opponent is a disaster on Crime, the Border, Inflation, & all else. Vote for Don Bolduc!” Trump said.

Previously, Bolduc aligned himself with Trump’s 2020 election interference claims before backtracking after winning the Republican nomination.

“The election was not stolen,” Bolduc previously told Fox News. His explanation was that he wanted to “move us forward to 2022 and 2024.” Bolduc’s waffling on the 2020 election is what caused Gov. Chris Sununu to endorse him.

Democrat Sen. Maggie Hassan, immediately seized on the news. “Donald Trump said it himself: Don Bolduc is an election denier, and his endorsement is further evidence that if elected, Don Bolduc would work to overturn our elections and continue to promote dangerous conspiracy theories that undermine New Hampshire’s free and fair elections,” she wrote on Twitter.

So far, Bolduc has yet to publicly address Trump’s endorsement.

RealClearPolitics has labeled the New Hampshire Senate race a “toss up” but Democrats are projected to hold onto the seat. However, recent polls have shown Bolduc rapidly closing the gap against Hassan, teeing up the possibility Republicans manage to flip the seat.

Is Doug Mastriano Planning a Senate Run?

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Photo via Wikimedia Commons

While Doug Mastriano’s November gubernatorial loss disappointed Republicans retired Army colonel-turned-state senator seems ready to strategize for the future.

A new report from POLITICO reveals Mastriano’s first steps toward a potential Senate run in 2024 and it seems clear he’s not ready to throw in the towel when it comes to pursuing higher office.

“What do you do with a movement of 2.2 million?” he told POLITICO. “We’re keeping it alive.”

“We’ve seen people in the past, other Republican gubernatorial candidates, they rise and they disappear when they lose. Why?” he asked. “You have people that love you and support you.”

Mastriano affirmed he is “praying” about whether to go forward with a potential Senate run in 2024. After God, his wife, Rebbie, will have the final word he said.

However, if Mastriano does decide to mount a Senate campaign the Republican would run in a primary for the right to take on Democrat Sen. Bob Casey. Which is likely to be a considerable challenge due in part to Sen. Casey’s familial history in the Keystone State.

POLITICO noted that “no one in the Pennsylvania GOP establishment is eager for that matchup. “

Casey’s father, former Gov. Robert Casey Sr., signed abortion regulations into law that went all the way to a landmark Supreme Court case, where they were largely kept intact. Mastriano even noted that Casey Sr. was “more pro-life than most Republicans” before insisting Sen. Casey is incapable of living up to his father’s legacy.

“I think he’s a huge disappointment. He’s nothing like his dad,” he said.

Still, all signs point to the fact Mastriano is taking steps to position himself for a possible run. He’s planning an upcoming rally in central Pennsylvania, which will feature Trump lawyer Christina Bobb and conservative media personality Wendy Bell as speakers. Mastriano also led a hearing on the East Palestine train derailment over the border from the incident in western Pennsylvania, and he successfully pushed a committee he chairs to subpoena Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw to testify.

He also hired Dan Cox, the unsuccessful Maryland gubernatorial nominee, as his chief-of-staff which has fueled speculation he might want to run for higher office again. He seemed to confirm the link during the interview.

“Hmm,” he said, laughing. “Gute erkennung. As the Germans say, ‘Good deduction.’”

Trump Refuses to Say He will Back the Republican Nominee in 2024

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Donald Trump is not in the business of doubting himself…

The former president who is currently on his third presidential campaign told Hugh Hewitt that he is not committed to backing the 2024 Republican nominee if it’s not him.

According to Mediaite, during an interview with Hugh Hewitt, once again, Trump harped about his former U.N. ambassador, Nikki Haley, running for president after pledging she wouldn’t run against Trump. After calling Haley “a very ambitious person,” Trump was asked about how Hewitt spoke to Larry Hogan (R) earlier in the day, who is also openly considering a 2024 run.

The former Maryland governor said he would support whoever the Republican Party nominates in 2024, even though he refused to back Trump in 2020. Thus, Hewitt asked Trump “if you’re not the nominee, will you support whoever the GOP nominee is?”

“It would depend,” Trump answered. “I would give you the same answer I gave in 2016 during the debate…It would have to depend on who the nominee was.”

As Trump said, his answer harkens back to the Fox News debate of 2015 where he refused to pledge his support for whoever won the Republican primary. 

Report: Trump’s Approval Rating Takes Concerning Nosedive

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Donald Trump via Gage Skidmore Flickr

The polls are in and it’s bad news for Donald Trump.

In the latest in a series of polls concerning the former president who is currently making a comeback bid results have shown other potential candidates soaring past him. The newest poll from Quinnipiac University shows Trump’s approval rating has sunk it its lowest level since 2015, according to The Hill.

The rating is Trump’s lowest recorded by Quinnipiac since July 2015, just after he’d announced his first run for the presidency. 

The poll, released Wednesday, found that less than a third of registered voters, or just 31 percent, have a favorable view of the former president, while 59 percent view him unfavorably. 

Seventy percent of all voters in the Quinnipiac poll — including 38 percent of Republicans — said they don’t want to see Trump as the GOP’s 2024 nominee.  

More than half of respondents (51 percent) in the Quinnipiac poll said Trump should be disqualified from the race due to his recent calls to terminate the Constitution

Recently, a Wall Street Journal poll also showed Trump trailing behind Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in a hypothetical matchup.