Are Republicans buying Trump’s neutrality in Senate primaries?
David Freddoso
During the 2022 election cycle, then-President Donald Trump‘s interventions in Senate primaries were, frankly, disastrous.
No, Trump wasn’t the only reason for the Republican Party‘s failure, but he played a huge role. His endorsement of Dr. Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania certainly decided the extremely close primary — it also put a weaker candidate in place who would eventually lose to a man incapable of serving in the U.S. Senate. Although he wasn’t the only one to back Herschel Walker in Georgia, he played a key role in convincing him to run even though he knew he had skeletons in his closet.
And Trump’s statewide endorsements generally, including in gubernatorial races in Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Arizona, led to losses in races that Republicans were supposed to win and to blowouts in races where Republicans were supposed to have a decent chance.
This is why the Senate Republicans’ campaign arm, headed by Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT), has been begging Trump to stay out of the primaries this time around and let them do the work of choosing favorites in GOP primaries. The Washington Examiner reported that story about the NRSC boss two weeks ago.
Then, on Monday, Daines gave an enthusiastic, full-throated endorsement of Trump for president.
“I’m proud to endorse Donald J. Trump for president of the United States,” Daines told Trump’s son, Donald Trump Jr., on his podcast, Triggered. Daines added that the “best four years” he had in the Senate were the ones when Trump was president. Trump Jr. replied, “That’s absolutely awesome.”
I think that might be the most enthusiastic and at least apparently heartfelt endorsement of Trump I’ve ever heard. And it was delivered in an obviously Trump-friendly, Trump-controlled environment. But did we just see a deal go down? Did Daines just fulfill a condition of keeping Trump from stepping on the NRSC’s toes in the 2024 primaries?
If so, then I completely understand — nobody in the GOP wants another 2022. But if not, then I think we’ll start finding out soon enough.