Trump launches 2024 White House bid, On Tuesday, Donald Trump announced his intention to run for president a third time, igniting a bitter Republican primary fight after his hand-picked candidates’ dismal midterm election performances made him look less powerful. At his opulent Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, the 76-year-old former president declared to hundreds of supporters gathered there that “America’s comeback starts right now.” Trump declared, “I am tonight announcing my candidacy for President of the United States.” He had just moments earlier submitted his official 2024 paperwork to the US election authority.
Trump launches 2024 White House bid
In Washington, Trump’s unusually early entry into the race for president is being interpreted as an effort to gain an advantage over other Republicans vying to be the party’s standard-bearer and to fend off potential criminal charges. Republicans are still licking their wounds from the disappointing midterm elections, which were largely attributed to the underperformance of Trump-backed candidates. Some openly wonder if Trump, with his divisive political style and myriad legal issues, is the right candidate to represent the party moving forward.
The governor of Florida Ron DeSantis, who defied the odds and won a resounding victory on November 8, is the most prominent of the potential 2024 primary rivals. Trump, who was twice impeached by the House of Representatives before losing the 2020 election to Democrat Joe Biden, begins his latest run for the White House with a number of potential disadvantages. Numerous inquiries are being made into his behavior before, during, and after his first term as president; these inquiries could ultimately lead to his disqualification.
These include allegations of fraud by his family business, his role in last year’s attack on the US Capitol, his attempt to overturn the 2020 election, and his stashing of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago. With Trump now a declared candidate, Biden’s attorney general, Merrick Garland, may be forced to name a special counsel to pursue the various investigations into the former president launched by the Department of Justice.
– Popular support –
In addition, the powerful media empire of Rupert Murdoch has appeared to turn its back on Tru’mp, labelling him after the midterms as a “loser” who shows “increasingly poor judgement.” Trump also remains banned by Facebook and Twitter, which was instrumental in his stunning political rise. Despite the dismal election showing by Trump loyalists, the real estate tycoon retains an undeniable popularity with the millions of grassroots supporters who have flocked to his “Make America Great Again” banner.
And despite being abandoned by several top Republican donors, he has amassed a campaign war chest of well over $100 million. Leading up to the midterms vote, Trump made denial of the 2020 election results a key litmus test for candidates seeking his endorsement. But a string of defeats by Tru’mp’s most loyal allies sapped his momentum heading into Tuesday’s launch. Having failed to wrest control of the Senate, Republicans appeared poised to take over the House, but with a razor-thin majority that will be difficult to keep in line.
The 79-year-old Biden, whose victory Tru’mp still refuses to acknowledge, has said his intention is to seek a second term — but he will make a final decision early next year.
– ‘Better choices’ –
Mike Pence, once-loyal to Tru’mp and a potential challenger in 2024 who just published a new book titled “So Help Me God,” told ABC News this week that the president’s actions on January 6, 2021 had been “reckless.” Pence would not immediately address whether Trump should run for office again. He said, “I think we’ll have better choices in the future. That’s up to the American people.
For the moment, the hard-right DeSantis looks like the leading challenger to Tru’mp in a Republican field that may include Pence, Texas Senator Ted Cruz, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, former secretary of state Mike Pompeo and ex-South Carolina governor Nikki Haley.
When asked about the former president’s criticism of him on Tuesday, Ron DeSantis, 44, who Trump has branded “Ron DeSanctimonious,” had a quick response, advising “people to go check out the scoreboard from last Tuesday night.” Even with Biden in the White House and the failures that we’re witnessing, he said, a Republican ticket led by the former president would struggle to win over independent votes. Tru’mp is attempting to become just the second American president to hold office for a non-consecutive period of time after Grover Cleveland, who was elected in 1884, lost in 1888, and then won again in 1892.