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January 24, 2023: Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Tuesday that he will decide whether to mount a bid for the White House in the “next handful of months” as he and his wife continue weighing his political future. (CBS News)

“Susan and I are thinking, praying, trying to figure out if this is the next place to go serve. We haven’t gotten to that conclusion. We’ll figure this out in the next handful of months,” Pompeo said in an interview with Gayle King on “CBS Mornings.”

Pompeo is out with a new book, “Never Give an Inch: Fighting for the America I Love,” that hit shelves Tuesday. The book focuses on his tenure serving as CIA director and secretary of state in the Trump administration and has been viewed as a springboard for a 2024 presidential run, though Pompeo said the goal is to “tell the story” of the Trump administration’s effort to “put the American people at the front of American foreign policy.”

If Pompeo does seek the Republican nomination in 2024, he would go up against his former boss, who announced in November that he would run for president a third time…

January 31, 2023: …But seizing attention at the moment is former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is currently making his push to join the 2024 conversation using that most useless of all campaign standbys – the political memoir. The good news is that Pompeo is slightly less pathetic than Pence. The bad news is that Pompeo is that he has even less of a chance of becoming president. (The New Republic)

What Pompeo brings to the table is that he is a Frankenstein’s monster of contemporary Republican politics. A creature bred in a Koch brothers lab – the best-known GOP megadonor-influencers were early investors in Pompeo’s aviation company; the Kansas native has been involved in the brothers’ political orbit for decades – Pompeo has hastily rebranded in the Trump era. Though he was reportedly alarmed by Trump’s efforts to foment a coup in the aftermath of the 2020 election, Pompeo has since largely sidestepped any or all talk of the Capitol riot…

April 15, 2023: Former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo said on Friday that he will not run for president in the 2024 election. (The Guardian)

The devoted ally and defender of Donald Trump opted out of a contest that would have put him into competition with his former commander in chief.

After saying he was weighing a run in January, the former Trump administration official and CIA director released a statement on the decision. “To those of you who this announcement disappoints, my apologies,” he said, calling it a personal choice…

…Where Haley and Pence have openly expressed differences with Trump, Pompeo has had no public split with the former president and hasn’t been rebuked by him, as many of his would-be rivals have. Pompeo recently referred to Trump as a “great boss.”

April 17, 2023: Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he will not run for president as a Republican candidate, and Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin is also looking unlikely to run, leaving room for the early voter favorites – former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. (Deseret News)

“Susan and I have concluded, after much consideration and prayer, that I will not present myself as a candidate to become President of the United States in the 2024 election,” Pompeo said in a release posted on Twitter on Friday…

…He said that his wife will continue to actively engage “as parents, Sunday school teachers, community leaders and business leaders,” adding that, “There remains much to do and the conservative cause is worthy.”…

…Pompeo, who said he was considering a 2024 presidential campaign earlier this year, was polling low among other GOP candidates as well as hopefuls. A national Quinnipiac University poll from February found that he had the support of only 4% of voters surveyed…

December 9, 2023: Back in Wichita for an event promoting his new book, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo didn’t mince words when asked if he supports Donald Trump’s 2024 bid for the presidency. (The Wichita Eagle)

“Oh, goodness, no,” Pompeo told a reporter before the event.

“Because we’re still thinking about running ourselves, and it will be interesting to see who else enters the race.”…

…Pompeo’s memoir – “Never Give An Inch” – is the latest signal that he is considering a run for president. He started a political action committee in April 2021 and has been visiting early primary states like Iowa and New Hampshire.

On Friday, Pompeo’s tour stopped at Wichita State University, where he also answered reporters’ questions on a federal abortion ban, election integrity and spy balloons…

Pompeo said he and his wife, Susan, expect to make a decision on a presidential run by late spring or early summer…

March 8, 2023: Chatter is growing around the possibility of Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) launching a 2024 presidential bid as he seeks to bolster his national profile. (The Hill)

Youngkin has inserted himself into the national spotlight in recent weeks as other potential GOP contenders, including fellow Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) of Florida, journey outside of their states to test the presidential waters. Last week, Youngkin made an appearance on CNBC’s morning show “Squawk Box” and will participate in a live town hall on CNN on education, a hot-button issue for the GOP primary base. The governor also met with donors in New York last week…

…While political observers interpret Youngkin’s media blitz as a sign he [is] considering jumping into the 2024 arena, those close to him also emphasize that he’s stumping for Virginia’s highly contested state legislature elections this fall…

…Only 42 percent of GOP respondents said Youngkin should seek their party’s nomination, according to the Roanoke College poll.

That same poll and other surveys also show Youngkin trailing former President Trump, as well as DeSantis, who is mulling a run and bolstering his public profile as well…

March 29, 2023: “Please, please, implored the Republican governor of Virginia: Let us “set aside acrimony” and finger-pointing and all the “mental gymnastics of partisanship” that combine to make people so tired and cynical about “politics as usual.” (Politico)

Before setting that aside, however, Glenn Youngkin had some work to do: In the very same speech to the General Assembly in which he urged bipartisan comity, he blamed Democratic predecessors for “systematically lowered” standards for student achievement, “soft on crime” policies that led to rising murder rates, and outsourcing the state’s energy future to “radical bureaucrats in California.”…

…It’s a matter of taste, to be sure, but many people do not find Youngkin painful. His approval ratings among Virginians is at 58 percent, according to a recent Roanoke College poll. Those who recoil at his rhetorical contradictions and the evident calculation behind them are heavily concentrated here around the state capitol: Legislators who resent what they regard as his unseemly haste in pursuing national ambitions, or local reporters stiffed by a governor who doesn’t much care for their questions.

When politicians can play both ends of the keyboard – sounding notes of grievance and aspiration with equal fluency – they often go far. This spring will likely force a decision by Youngkin about how far, and how fast, he wants to try and go. Should he run for president, even as he was only elected governor, his first foray into politics, less than a year and a half ago?

The reasons to be skeptical are fairly simple. The Republican donor and operative class that wants to put Trump out of their misery for good – the people Youngkin will need if he runs – are worried that the field of candidates will grow too large, dividing the anti-Trump vote. Youngkin’s biography, a wealthy private-equity executive known for his earnest religiosity, conveys a superficial resemblance to Mitt Romney. The 2012 nominee was an establishment natural and may have won some suburban independents that Donald Trump never could – but hardly enough to compensate for his lack of populist skills…

…Unlike DeSantis, however, he also pivots at other moments to sound like a Republican version of Bill Clinton’s 1990s centrism. He says the GOP must avoid exclusionary rhetoric and ideological litmus tests. “What I’ve seen in Virginia, and I think I see across this nation, is we in fact have to bring people into the Republican Party, we have to be additive not [rely on] subtraction.”…

…The reality is that Youngkin is less of an updated version of Mitt Romney than he is of someone who actually became president, George W. Bush…

…As he ponders a presidential run, Youngkin presumably is seeking guidance from a higher power than political journalists. Even so, the political press has an obvious interest in the answer: A Youngkin candidacy would be an entertaining addition to the 2024 race. And it would test the hypothesis that there is a future for a brand of GOP politics that lies somewhere between the nihilism of Trumpism and the pallor of Romneyism.

May 19, 2023: Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) released a campaign-style video Thursday, further fueling speculation about a possible 2024 presidential bid. (The Hill)

“It’s pretty overwhelming to contemplate the future of American,” Youngkin says in the video, which pulled remarks from the governor’s address at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in April…

…The video, which was paid for by the governor’s Spirit of Virginia PAC, comes after Youngkin said earlier this month that he would not head out on the presidential campaign trail this year.

“I’m going to be working in Virginia this year,” he said at an event at the Milken Institute in Washington D.C.

However, the Virginia governor has continued to stoke speculation about a White House run, appearing not to completely rule out a potential 2024 presidential bid, with an aide telling The Hill at the time that Youngkin’s statement about “working in Virginia” was an answer to a question and meant to reiterate that he was focused on his state in 2023…

July 28, 2023: As Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s presidential campaign stumbles, high-powered GOP figures are turning their attention to another well-known governor: Glenn Youngkin of Virginia. (USA Today)

Youngkin’s approval rating just hit an all-time high, according to a recent poll in which 57% of Virginia voters said they approved of their governor’s job performance. Te same survey found DeSantis’s popularity had slipped between the start of the year and this summer, with his approval rating dropping four points among Florida Republicans and two points among all voters in the state.

This favorability, along with Youngkin’s record-breaking fundraising efforts, has upped speculation about a 2024 presidential campaign. And some party leaders are increasingly hopeful…

…”It’s really humbling when people talk about 2024 and a national role for me. And I thank them, and then I retierate that I’ve got a big job to do here,” Youngkin told USA Today…

September 13, 2023: Some Republicans are holding out hope that a new candidate – perhaps Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin or Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp – will drop into the GOP presidential primary at the last moment and stop former President Donald Trump from winning the party’s nomination. (NBC News)

But at this late date, even The Flash would have a tough time beating deadlines to get on the primary ballot in some states, according to Republicans familiar with the mechanics of running for president…

…To get on the ballot in states isn’t that hard, but it’s time consuming and can be expensive,” [Nick] Trainer said. “These folks’ carriage in their fantasy land is about to turn into a pumpkin.

In other words, the field is all but set, and Republicans who want someone other than Trump know who their choices are now…

October 17, 2023: Glenn Youngkin was waving off talk about running for the White House back in 2021, before he’d even made it to the Virginia governor’s mansion. (Associated Press)

Brad Hobbs, a childhood friend, told The Associated Press at the time that his ultimate goal was to see the Harvard-educated Republican run for president. Hobbs said he brought it up nonstop, even in front of others, which irked Youngkin…

…Conjecture that Youngkin, who is set to host a major donor retreat Tuesday and Wednesday, might make a late entry into the 2024 presidential race has only grown since his victory nearly two years ago. It could further escalate after next month’s high-stakes legislative elections, where he’s aiming for a GOP sweep…

…But the 56-year-old Youngkin, who in public remarks has demurred but not totally shut the door to a bid, would face logistical campaign difficulties, ballot access hurdles, and – according to interviews around the country over the past week – skepticism from some Republican voters, who either don’t know him well or are locked in on Trump…

…Youngkin, who answers questions about his presidential prospects by saying he’s flattered to be in the conversation but focused on Virginia, is currently in the midst of a hectic final push to the state’s Nov. 7 election, with early voting already underway…

…With less than 100 days until voting starts with Iowa’s leadoff caucuses, Youngkin does not have the kind of campaign organization that a presidential hopeful needs to recruit supporters for caucuses or get voters to turn out in January. Most of the presidential campaigns have organizing since early 2023. Trump also has enormous name recognition, years of organizing experience and established supporters nationwide…

November 8, 2023: Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said Wednesday that he’s “not going anywhere,” and that he remains focused on the state, indicating that he will not be a candidate in the 2024 presidential election. (NBC News)

Youngkin has long left wiggle room in his answers to questions about the 2024 election, even as filing deadlines and other logistical hurdle made the idea of a late presidential bid seem unlikely. Even so, some supporters have long remained interested in the idea of his joining the GOP primary field.

But jumping in now would mean going back on his statement that he’s staying focused on his state.

Youngkin brushed off a direct question about the 2024 race by noting at a post-election news conference that he’s not on the ballot in the early primary states. Youngkin said he was “disappointed” in the state legislative results Tuesday, in which Democrats kept the State and flipped the state House, despite a big Republican push for complete control of state government…

…Virginia Republicans, led by Youngkin, competed to take over the Legislature for the final two years of his term and win the ability to push their legislative proposals. They included a proposed restriction on abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy. But Democrats campaigned hard against the plan and won key swing seats using that message…

May 9, 2023: Vivek Ramaswamy will return your call. He’ll say “yes” to almost any interview request – no matter the outlet – and will linger long after scheduled events die down, autographing a piece of fruit or letting prospective supports lay hands on his chest to cancel Satan’s plans. (Politico)

It’s the most always-on, always-available strategy of the 2024 presidential race. And it appears to be working.

Ten weeks after Ramaswamy launched his presidential run, the wealthy 37-year-old biotech entrepreneur has suddenly moved from suspected vanity campaigner to a contender polling in one recent measure on part with established Republicans like former Vice President Mike Pence, Nikki Haley and Sen. Tim Scott…

…Ramaswamy is still a longshot. But the attention he has quickly drawn is significant in a primary in which DeSantis has slid well behind Trump in primary polling while other Republican candidates scramble to make their mark…

May 10, 2023: Just 10 weeks after launching his campaign, Republican presidential hopeful and former biotech executive Vivek Ramaswamy has risen enough in some polls to match the popularity of well-known candidates such as former vice President Mike Pence and former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley. He’s pulling respective crowds in early primary states, and he’s reportedly already got some fans who cry out of happiness when they talk about him. (MSNBC)

While he still poises no threat to former President Donald Trump or Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, the surge of interest is still a striking development in an already-packed race. Why are people paying attention to this guy?

Two short profiles in The New York Times and Politico this week focus a great deal on Ramaswamy’s personality and always-say-yes attitude toward media interviews as a way of explaining the surge of Republican interest in him. But what these reports overlook in their narratives is that he’s also getting traction because he’s promising to be more extreme than Trump. Ramaswamy remains a total long shot, but his ability to secure attention is a function of his extremism – and the extremism of the party he’s trying to win over…

…Ramaswamy, like Buttigieg in 2020, has correctly identified the power of intense retail politics and media overexposure as a tactic for building a narrative, and, like Yang, he likely profits from being very online. But there’s an essential ingredient to why the matters are paying off: Ramaswamy is affirming the Republican base’s instincts by promising to succeed where Trump failed to deliver and perfect MAGA politics. And people are eating it up…

August 21, 2023: Standing in a packed New Hampshire restaurant, Vivek Ramaswamy, the fresh-faced Republican shaking up the 2024 presidential race, is making a case for unifying a bitterly divided nation. The secret, he insists, is as American as apple pie: capitalism. (Forbes)

…At 38 years old, the biotech investor and “anti-woke” warrior is worth more than $950 million. His net worth was over $1 billion about a week ago, making him one of the youngest billionaires in the country, before a downturn in the market pulled him just under the billion-dollar threshold, according to Forbes’ calculations. Still, he appears to be the second-wealthiest person competing in the Republican presidential primary, behind only Donald Trump (whose net worth Forbes last pegged at $2.5 billion)…

…Then there are his political interests. In 2021, Ramaswamy stepped down as CEO of Roivant and got into politics, authoring a book called “Woke, Inc.,” which criticized corporate America’s growing focus on social justice issues and the ESG (environmental, social and governance) movement taking over Wall Street. A year later, he founded an “anti-woke” index fund provider – think BlackRock, without all the talk about saving the world – named Strive Asset Management. Investors recently valued Strive at a lofty $300 million or so, according to two individuals familiar with the financing, implying that Ramaswamy’s state is worth well over $100 million…

…Despite all his money and connections, Ramaswamy looks pretty comfortable doing a meet-and-greet politicking in New Hampshire. It helps, he says, that he doesn’t live like a tycoon. “I don’t think we have lived a lifestyle that is radically removed from the one we grew up in.”

He owned two Ohio homes worth a combined $2.5 million, less than the real estate portfolios of far-less-wealthy candidates, including Nikki Haley, Francis Suarez, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and President Joe Biden. “We don’t have a giant vacation homes,” Ramaswamy says. “We see five of our neighbor’s backyards. We have good relationships with our neighbors.”…

September 27, 2023: Vivek Ramaswamy, a multimillionaire former biotech executive, has a chance to build on the attention he’s been getting in the race for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination at Wednesday night’s second debate. (Reuters)

…In recent years, Ramaswamy has become a fierce conservative. In his 2021 bestseller “Woke, Inc.,” Ramaswamy decries decisions by some big companies to base business strategy around social justice and climate change concerns, and lambasts “wokeism” as an insidious influence on hard work, capitalism, religious faith and patriotism. The book raised Ramaswamy’s profile among conservatives, and he began is rapid ascension as a right-wing star…

…Ramaswamy declared his campaign for president in February, at a time when his bid looked like a long shot. He still languishes in the single digits in most opinion polls but has been gaining on many of his rivals, most notably Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who is now fighting to retain his second-place status.

Ramaswamy’s strong, pugnacious performance in the first debate last month, when he laid out an agenda even further to the right of Trump on some issues, earned him a lot of attention, as well as criticism, and boosted him in some Republican primary opinion polls.

He has been a fierce defender of Trump while seeking to appeal to Christian evangelicals, an important part of the Republican primary electorate. Although a Hindu, Ramaswamy has been telling voters that the U.S. is based on “Christian values” and “Judeo-Christian values” and has described himself as an American nationalist.

His policy positions are mostly deeply conservative. He opposes affirmative action and supports state-level bans on abortion after six weeks, with exceptions for rape, incest, and if the mother’s life is in danger. Ramaswamy wants to greatly expand the powers of the presidency and dismantle much of the federal government, including the FBI, the Department of Education, and the tax-collecting Internal Revenue Service…

November 11, 2023: Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy’s national political director, Brian Swenson, is departing the campaign to work on former President Trump’s team, Ramaswamy senior advisor Tricia McLaughlin confirmed to The Hill. (The Hill)

…The development comes as Ramaswamy has been trailing Trump and several other 2024 Republican contenders, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley, in early state polls.

The 38-year-old biotech entrepreneur launched his campaign in February as a little-known candidate in February as a little-known candidate, later emerging in the summer as a breakout star. But Ramaswamy struggled to keep up that momentum, including during the presidential debates as he became tangled in back-and-forths with Haley and former Vice President Pence.

November 20, 2023: Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy called out Democratic strategist Donna Brazile on Sunday, maintaining she “intentionally mispronounced” his name during a TV appearance. (The Hill)

The presidential candidate responded to a clip from “Real Time with Bill Maher” in which Brazil, the former interim chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), questioned how to pronounce Ramaswamy’s name…

…Ranaswamy, who was born in the United States to Indian parents, panned the former DNC head’s remarks on the show.

“I wonder what they’d do if a white Republican intentionally mispronounced Donna’s name & then told her to return ‘home’,” Ramaswamy wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, while sharing a laughing emoji”…

December 4, 2023: Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy said in an interview that he’ll “overpreform expectations” in Iowa and New Hampshire primaries next month. (The Hill)

During an appearance on NewsNation’s The Hill, Ramaswamy told host Blake Burman that he believes he has a good shot of winning state primaries in Iowa, Nevada, and New Hampshire.

Ramaswamy said that he plans one completing the “full Grassley” – visiting all 99 Iowa counties – twice in the first week of January, noting that he’s already attracted supporters who are first time caucus goers in the state.

“Many of the people come in to support us at the caucus are first time ever caucus goers, which means we’re going to shatter what the polls say, and I think there’s a surprise coming on January 15,” Ramaswamy told Burman.

When Burman asked if Ramaswamy wanted to overpreform expectations in those states, the entrepreneur turned presidential candidate reiterated his initial remarks…

June 7, 2023: North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum entered the Republican race for president Wednesday, offering himself as a candidate of “small town values” who can help steer the country in a different direction. (NBC News)

“We need a leader who understands the real work that Americans do every day – someone who’s worked alongside our farmers or ranchers and our small-business owners,” Burgum said during his announcement speech in Fargo. “Someone who’s held jobs where you shower at the end of the day, not at the beginning.”

Burgum, 66, is the latest edition to a field that is expanding with GOP hopefuls eager to assert themselves as the most appealing alternative to the front-runner, former President Donald Trump…

…Burgum’s entry followed a Tuesday night launch in New Hampshire by former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and came about an hour ahead of former Vice President Mike Pence’s expected campaign kickoff in Iowa….

…A former businessman who years ago turned a small software company into a $1.1 billion deal with Microsoft, Burgum begins as a long shot in a crowded primary. The Republican National Committee’s recently released criteria for qualifying for the first presidential debate in August include specific polling and fundraising thresholds that could be tough for someone so unknown outside North Dakota. One CNN poll last month placed Burgum, – who besides DeSantis is the only other sitting governor in the race, but one which a much lower profile – at 1% nationally.

In an interview last month with NBC News, the multimillionaire Burgum said he would invest his own money in the campaign, though he did not disclose how much he is willing to spend…

…Debate participants also will be required to pledge support to the GOP’s eventual nominee. Trump has not committed to doing so. And some of his opponents have said they do not plan to back the former president if he’s nominated for a third straight time.

Burgum told NBC News last month that he would support Trump or any Republican in a race against President Joe Biden…

July 9, 2023: North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgrum has said he would vote for Donald Trump again for president, but he draws the line at ever conducting business with the man he’s running against for the Republican nomination. (NBC News)

Burgum, a former business owner who turned a small software company into a $1.1 billion deal with Microsoft, was asked whether he would do business with Trump by host Chuck Todd in an interview that aired Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

“I don’t think so,” Burgum responded. Asked why, he said, “I just think it’s important that you’re judged by the company you keep.”

One person Burgum said he’d be comfortable doing business with is Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of Twitter and Tesla.

Asked what the difference was between Musk and Trump, Burgum said: “Just look at business track records is what I would say, and that’s what I would take a peek at before I would make a decision about who you partner with.”…

…Burgum has focused his campaign more on policy issues than on the culture war topics favored by other candidates, like Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. He said on “Meet the Press” that that would remain his focus if he’s elected president…

July 12, 2023: Looking to make a splash in the crowded pool of Republican presidential contenders, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum is offering an unusual deal to donors: Anyone who sends a donation of at least $1 will get a $20 gift card in return. (NPR)

The campaign’s offer is good for the first 50,000 donors – and is an unconventional bid to meet the fundraising thresholds required to be onstage for next month’s Republican primary debate.

In this case, it’s not the dollar amount of donations that matters; it’s the number of donors. To participate in the debate, candidates must have at least 40,000 donors. They also have to bring in donations from 200 or more donors in at least 20 states.

The rules create “some unusual incentives” for quickly building a wide donor base, Nick Bauroth, who chairs the political science department at North Dakota State University, told NPR.

“This offer could cost Bugrum up to a million dollars, but well worth it if he gets on the main stage,” at the debate, Bauroth added. Also worth remembering: Bugrum is a billionaire…

…Who is Burgum? He’s a former political outsider who surprised many in 2016 when he won the race to become his home state’s governor. That year, Burgum had placed third in the running for the Republican convention’s endorsement – but he won the party primary just two months later.

“In the past, the party endorsement decided the matter,” Bauroth said, but Burgum overturned that norm. He was reelected in 2020…

…Burgum announced his candidacy for U.S. president last month via a launch event in Fargo and an opinion piece in The Wall Street Journal. He’s battling for attention against the likes of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former President Donald Trump…

November 12, 2023: Long-shot Republican presidential candidate Doug Burgum, the governor of North Dakota, has vowed that he will not suspend his campaign before the New Hampshire primary after he failed to make the debate stage in Miami last week. (NBC News)

Burgum has stagnated in early-state polls in recent months and failed to qualify for the third GOP presidential primary debate, hosted by NBC News on Wednesday.

Asked by NBC News is he could guarantee his campaign would last at least through the Iowa caucuses on Jan. 15, Burgum said Saturday after a campaign event here: “100%”.

“Iowa, New Hampshire – absolutely, positively, we’re going to be here,” Burgum added…

…Since he launched his bid in June, Burgum’s campaign has failed to jump-start despite having spent millions along with his super PAC, on television advertising.

The candidate’s personal wealth may be what’s still keeping his campaign alive. Former Vice President Mike Pence recently suspended his campaign over financial woes, but Burgum’s successful career as a tech mogul and businessman has allowed him to self-fund much of his long-shot bid…

…After not meeting the RNC’s qualifications to appear on Wednesday’s debate stage, Burgum has upped his criticism of the RNC for what he calls its “clubhouse rules.”

“The RNC has no charter to say we’re going to narrow the field artificially two months before the voting starts,” he said Saturday, adding that “two months is an eternity in presidential primaries.”

December 4, 2023: North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum ended his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination on Monday after a stronger-than-expected showing fueled by a gift card-for-campaign donation gimmick that helped him get on the debate stage. (The Guardian)

Burgum, a second-term governor and wealthy software entrepreneur, was little known nationally when he launched his 2024 presidential campaign in June, touting his priorities of energy, the economy and national security, as well as his small-town roots and leadership of the sparsely populated state.

He participated in the first two Republican debates, meeting donor requirements of the Republican National Committee by offering $20 “Biden Relief Cards” – a jab at rising inflation rates during President Joe Biden’s term – in exchange for $1 donation. The tactic drew skepticism over its legality, through Burgum’s campaign said its legal advisors had reviewed and approved the method.

He failed to qualify for the third debate, however, after coming up short on the polling requirements. And it appeared he would also not qualify for the fourth debate.

Indeed, he blamed the Republican National Committee, which sets qualifications for the debates, for “nationalizing the primary process and taking the power of democracy away from the engaged, thoughtful citizens of Iowa and New Hampshire.”…

…Ultimately, he was unable to gain much traction against his rivals in a contest dominated by Donald Trump. He joins Mike Pence, the former vice-president; Tim Scott; a South Carolina senator Larry Elder; the radio show host Perry Johnson; Will Hurd, former Texas congressman and Frances Suarez, the mayor of Miami, in suspending his bid…

May 15, 2023: A new super PAC backing Mike Pence as a 2024 presidential candidate launched Monday, marking a significant step as the former vice president weighs whether to enter the GOP primary in the coming weeks. (The Hill)

Committed to America announced its leadership, which includes former Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) and veteran GOP consultant Scott Reed as national co-chairs.

“Mike Pence is the conservative leader our nation needs at this critical time,” Hensarling said in a statement. “From chairing the House Republican Conference, to leading the state of Indiana, to serving as vice president, Mike has consistently demonstrated an unparalleled commitment to conservative principles and the Constitution. Mike can win, he is ready to lead, and I am proud to help lead the effort that will send him to the White House.”

The executive director of the group will be Bobby Saparow, who managed Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp’s (R) reelection campaign in 2022, when Kemp defeated Democrat Stacey Abrams by a wider margin than he did in 2018…

…The pro-Pence super PAC will launch with offices in Dallas and Iowa, the group said, with additional hiring announcements expected in the coming days.

The launch of Committed to America is one of the clearest signs to date that Pence is likely to enter the 2024 presidential race…

May 31, 2023: Former Vice President Mike Pence is likely to announce next week that he is running for president in 2024, according to a source familiar with the plans. (The Hill)

The source said Pence’s team is finalizing plans to launch his campaign for the White House, joining the expanding GOP primary field with a forward-looking video announcement and speech that makes the case for his candidacy.

The former vice president is expected to put much of his focus on Iowa, which hosts the first caucus on the GOP primary calendar.

Pence is scheduled to participate in a CNN town hall in Des Moines, Iowa June 7 – an event that was billed in one release as a “Presidential Town Hall.” Pence will celebrate his 64th birthday the same day.

NBC News and CNN reported that Pence will make his campaign official on June 7…

…For Pence to win the nomination, he will have to overtake Trump, his old running mate. Pence was unflinchingly loyal to Trump throughout their four years in office together, defending the former president through myriad controversies…

May 31, 2023: Former Vice President Mike Pence is set to launch his run for the White House against his old boss, former President Donald Trump, within the the coming two weeks, four sources familiar with the planning told The Messenger.

The Georgia Republican Party may have tipped Pence’s hand Wednesday in an email explaining he could not longer deliver the keynote address at a June 9th even. Pence would make “an announcement regarding his future plans” at a televised town hall, the email said. The Georgia GOP did not specify which town hall, but Pence is scheduled to headline a CNN town hall in Des Moines, Iowa on June 7, his 64th birthday.

Four Republicans familiar with the plans say Pence and his team started ramping up their outreach two weeks ago, telling supporters that the launch was imminent and would take place in mid-June…

…The launch marks a historic run by the two men at the center, yet opposite sides, of the January 6 insurrection. The former vice president, who rioters came within 40 feet of confronting in the Capitol that day as other Trump faithfuls chanted “Hang Mike Pence,” has been reticent to comment on the attack in public, yet has been cooperating to various degrees with investigators probing Trump’s responsibility for the attack…

June 7, 2023: Former Vice President Mike Pence formally launched his 2024 presidential campaign Wednesday, releasing a video that made the broad case for his candidacy amid an increasingly crowded Republican primary field. (The Hill)

In a nearly three-minute video, titled “Best Days,” Pence made no direct mention of former President Trump, nor is the former president featured on screen.

Instead, the former vice president narrates a video that offers a brief personal history of his family and government service and argues that the country should turn the page on President Biden without returning to Trump…

…Wednesday’s video launch comes two days after Pence officially filed paperwork to run for president in 2024. The former vice president is set to hold an event in Iowa on Wednesday afternoon, followed in the evening by a CNN town hall event in Des Moines….

…Ultimately, though, it remains to be seen whether the is an appetite among GOP primary voters for a Pence candidacy. A section of primary voters who still back Trump view Pence as a traitor because he did not reject the 2020 election results when he oversaw Congress’ official electoral count as vice president and instead insisted on abiding by the Constitution. And those looking for an alternative may be more drawn to candidates like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis…

June 7, 2023: Mike Pence, who as Donald Trump’s vice-president narrowly escaped harm at the hands of the January 6 rioters, launched his run for the Republican presidential nomination next year, pitting him against his former boss. (The Guardian)

Pence filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday afternoon and released his official campaign launch video early on Wednesday. His formal launch event was planned to take place in Des Moines, Iowa, on Wednesday – his 64th birthday.

He posted the video on Twitter on Wednesday, writing: “I believe in the American people, and I have faith God is not done with American yet. Together, we can bring this Country back and the best days for the Greatest Nation on Earth are yet to come.”…

…He attacked the Democratic administration of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, showing clips of the president and vice president and warning about the “radical left” that “recession is looming,” the US-Mexico border is “under siege” and “the American dream is being crushed under runaway inflation,” lamenting a “weakened America” at home and abroad.

The former congressman and Indiana governor, an evangelical conservative, enters a primary dominated by Trump, who enjoys commanding polling leads, well clear of his nearest challenger, the rightwing Florida governor Ron DeSantis.

A Pence run has long been expected but he has not registered significantly in polling, generally contesting third place with the former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley…

June 17, 2023: Former Vice President Mike Pence said he does not know why other 2024 Republican presidential candidates “presume” former President Trump will be found guilty of the charges he is facing. (The Hill)

Pence said in an interview with Chuck Todd on NBC’s “Meet the Press,”… that discussing whether to pardon Trump for the charges he is facing is “premature,” as the legal proceedings have not yet played out.

“Let me say first and foremost, I don’t know why some of my competitors in the Republican primary presume the president will be found guilty,” he said. “Look, all we know is what the president has been accused of in his indictment. We don’t know what his defense is. We don’t know if this will even go to trial. It could be subject to a motion to dismiss. We don’t know what the verdict will be of the jury.”…

…Todd pressed Pence on whether he would pardon Trump now if he was in President Biden’s position.

“I just think this whole matter is incredibly divisive for the country. And look, I just think at the end of the day, it is saddening to me that we are now in this moment,” Pence responded.

Pence said before the indictment was issues that he hoped the Justice Department would not move forward as it would divide the country, but said after it was unsealed that the allegations against Trump are “very serious” and he “can’t defend” what is alleged.

Trump pleaded not guilty to all 37 counts filed against him in the classified and sensitive documents probe Tuesday.

June 17, 2023: Former Vice President and 2024 candidate Mike Pence said he would “clean house” in federal law enforcement if he was elected president.

“The American people have lost confidence in the Department of Justice. And if I’m president of the United States on day one, we’re going to clean house from the top floor of the Department of Justice and bring in a whole new group of people, Pence told The New York Post.

Alongside a wave of new hires at the Justice Department, Pence said the first person he would fire would be FBI Director Christopher Wray.

Pence has previously questioned Justice Department investigations into former President Trump and said that discussions on whether Trump should be pardoned are “premature.”

“The President is entitled to his day in court, he’s entitled to bring a defense, and I want to reserve judgement until he has the opportunity to respond,” he told The Wall Street Journal this week…

…Pence also signaled that his relationship with Trump may have faltered since they both left office, telling The New York Post that Trump “was” his friend. Pence faced criticism of the former president’s supporters after he refused to stop the certification of the election during the Jan. 6 insurrection in 2021.

October 28, 2023: Former Vice President Mike Pence announced Saturday that he is suspending his 2024 campaign for the White House. (The Hill)

“It’s become clear to me it’s not my time,” Pence said during a speech at the Republican Jewish Coalition Conference. “I’ve decided to suspend my campaign for president effective today.”

“To the American people, I say: this is not my time, but it is still your time,” he added.

The former Indiana governor said that while he’s leaving the campaign trail, he will “never stop fighting to elect principled Republican leaders to every office in the land.”…

May 18, 2023: Iowa – GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley has a message for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R): “Welcome to the race. We’ve been waiting.” (The Hill)

Haley, in an exclusive on-camera interview with The Hill at a campaign stop on the banks of the Mississippi, added, “I’m glad that he’s going to be out there, because I want the American people to see who they’re choosing from.”

Haley was reading to the news report that the Florida governor would finally officially enter the presidential race next week.

Haley, a former South Carolina governor and United Nations ambassador, has been running for president since February and has at times jabbed other potential candidates for their reticence to enter the race.

Haley has one similarity with DeSantis, however – she too is willing to plunge into the most contentious battles in the culture wars…

…The only female candidate in the race, Haley has staked out a more nuanced position than some on abortion. While she signed a 20-week ban on abortion as governor of South Carolina, she does not currently back a federal ban.

Pressed on whether she would back such a ban if it were politically possible, she contended: “It’s not realistic.”

“The idea that a Republican president is going to go ban all abortions is not true,” she said. “So I think we have to be honest with the American people, not scare them, but tell the truth and let them know exactly what is truly debatable and what’s not.”…

May 15, 2023: Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley’s husband will set out on a deployment with the South Caroline National Guard to Africa in the coming weeks, according to a person familiar with the deployment. (The Hill)

…Michael Haley’s deployment with the State National Guard will be in support of the United States Africa Command. He will likely remain on deployment through the spring of 2024…

…Michael Haley is currently a major in the South Carolina National Guard. He joined the military branch in 2006 as an officer. In 2023, he deployed to Afghanistan’s Helmand Province.

His deployment comes as Nikki Haley continues to barnstorm through early presidential nominating states as part of her presidential campaign. Haley will attend Sen. Joni Ernst’s (R-Iowa) annual Roast and Ride event with a number of other Republican presidential hopefuls Saturday and will participate in a CNN town hall Sunday…

June 17, 2023: Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley wished her husband farewell at a ceremony Saturday as he starts a yearlong deployment with the South Carolina Army National Guard. (The Hill)

Maj. Michael Haley, the husband of the former ambassador to the United Nations, is being sent as a staff officer with the 218th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade in the Horn of Africa.

The ceremony was for about 200 soldiers at The Citadel, a military college in Charleston.

“He’s always been my rock,” Haley said after the ceremony. “We have both lived a life of service, and so when he goes off to deploy, my support is completely with him. If I happen to be running for president, his support is completely with me.”…

…Nikki and Michael Haley have been married for 26 years. He has consistently been present at rallies she has held so far during her candidacy. The campaign has said their son, Nalin, will take over the role Michael has served…

November 20, 2023: Of all of Donald Trump’s distant challenges for the GOP nomination, Nikki Haley has emerged as perhaps the most viable alternative – rising in the polls and raking in donor dollars on the strength of debate performances in which she registered as more reasonable than most of her rivals. But in an appearance in Iowa over the weekend, the former South Carolina governor made it clear she’s cut from the same cloth as her fellow Republicans, including on abortion. (Vanity Fair)

…Haley, a former Trump administration official, had a stand-out moment in the third GOP primary debate where she called to “find consensus” on abortion: “As much as I’m pro-life, I don’t judge anyone for being pro-choice, and I don’t want them to judge me for being pro-life,” Haley said. “We don’t need to divide America over this issue anymore.”

Of course, Haley has good reason to want the issue to be less charged: The day before that Miami debate, voters in off-year races across the country once again expressed their displeasure with the GOP’s anti-abortion extremism at the ballot box, in what President Joe Biden and the Democrats hope is a preview of next fall’s general election. Haley’s comparatively soft rhetoric around abortion on November 8 wasn’t a statement of principle so much as it was an effort to find less politically-damaging ways to talk about the issue…

December 2, 2023: GOP hopeful Nikki Haley faces a moment of truth in the next primary debate Wednesday in Alabama: Can she seize on her momentum and put in a top-level performance that will turn her into a real rival for the presidential nomination to former President Trump? (The Hill)

The former United Nation’s ambassador has seen boosts from her previous debate performances, and another standout showing could propel her ahead of Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who has long been considered Trump’s closest rival.

Given Trump’s significant lead over the rest of the GOP field, all eyes are on the race for second place – with just more than a month before 2024 voting kicks off with the Iowa caucuses in mid-January…

…Haley got another boost last week when Americans for Prosperity Action, the conservative network led by billionaire Charles Koch, backed her 2024 bid. JPMorgam Chase CEO Jamie Dimon also called for Democrats to help Haley in her bid…

…The fourth debate – which is being hosted and broadcast by NewsNation and is being held in Tuscaloosa – is also a pivotal moment for DeSantis.

…The Republican National Committee (RNC) hasn’t yet announced which candidates have met their heightened criteria for the fourth debate, but Haley, DeSantis and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy appear to have qualified. Chris Christie’s team has said the former New Jersey governor has also met the donor criteria.

Trump has skipped the debate stages so far, and plans to forgo the next…

December 8, 2023: Home Depot co-founder and billionaire Ken Langone put his support behind GOP hopeful Nikki Haley on Friday, calling her approach to the 2024 election “smart.” (The Hill)…

…The backing from Langone, who endorsed former President Trump in his 2016 White House campaign, comes after Haley secured an endorsement from another top donor: the Koch-affiliated Americans for Prosperity (AFP) Action. The organization announced their support last month, making the first time a deep-pocketed group has endorsed a GOP candidate in a presidential primary…

…Haley’s endorsements have given her a leg up on DeSantis, who was long seen as Trump’s biggest rival in the race. But, despite her best efforts and donors, skepticism remains over whether she can truly overtake Trump, who is in the lead by double digits in national polling.

December 9, 2023: Nikki Haley is seeking to rebound after a debate performance in Alabama that drew a mixed reception from Republicans a little more than a month out from the Iowa caucuses. (The Hill)

Haley went into the debate, which was hosted by The Hill’s sister news organization NewsNation, with high expectations after several strong debate performances gave her a burst of momentum in recent months. It was immediately clear during the Wednesday night event that the former U.N. ambassador was the candidate to take on, with rivals – including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) – hurling attacks at her right out of the gate as they vie to be the main alternative to former President Trump in the Republican presidential primary.

While observers said Haley didn’t have a terrible showing in Tuscaloosa, Ala., many said she failed to stand out like she did in previous debates, potentially threatening her standing as she and DeSantis look to shore up the most support among Republican voters wanting to move on from Trump…

…DeSantis had long been seen as the party’s best Trump alternative, but Haley has surged in recent weeks, threatening the Florida governor’s runner-up status. Haley has been gaining on DeSantis in Iowa and has far surpassed him in New Hampshire, according to RealClearPolitics polling averages of each state…

…Haley’s campaign maintained she left the event in a strong position, pointing to a CNN focus group of Iowa voters that voted Haley as the winner. The Wall Street Journal also reported that Haley was the most searched-for candidate on Google during the debate…

…Haley and DeSantis both would benefit from candidates like Ramaswamy and Christie to start dropping out, strategists noted…

March 29, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has vowed not to support former President Donald Trump in 2024, making him the first candidate in a field of potential GOP presidential candidates to explicitly say so. (Business Insider)

“I can’t help him. No way.” Christie told Axios in an interview published on Tuesday.

“Look, I just can’t. When you have the Jan. 6 choir at a rally and you show a video of it – I just don’t think that person is appropriate for the presidency,” Christie told Axios.

He was referring to “Justice for All,” a song sung by a group of men incarcerated for their suspected role in the Capitol riot. Known collectively as the J6 Prison Choir, they sang a rendition of “The Star Spangled Banner” from behind bars, with Trump adding a Voiceover of the Pledge of Allegiance…

…But Christie has distanced himself from Trump in the last year and is now a vocal Trump critic. In November, he called out other GOP politicians for being too scared to disavow Trump…

…Christie’s comments to Axios come as he mulls a 2024 presidential bid of his own – which will put him on a collision course with Trump. He told Fox News on March 23 that he will “probably make a decision in the next 60 days on what to do or not to do.”

April 16, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) said the various investigations into former President Trump make a hypothetical GOP presidential primary win “uncertain”. (The Hill)

“No, I don’t think that the field [is] starting to look like Trump,” Christie said on ABC’s “This Week.” “In fact, you know, when you’re indicted in one place, and you’re facing investigations [in] two others, it makes you at least an uncertain winner. But again, he’s the former president. So of course he’s going to be the frontrunner. He has the best name ID in the race, of anybody else running, but you already have four other candidates now who are announced in.”

Trump earlier this month became the first sitting or former U.S. president to face criminal charges and pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. A 2024 candidate to retake the White House, he’s fundraised off the Manhattan prosecutor’s probe he has branded a “witch hunt.”

At the same time, Trump is also under scrutiny from two special counsel inquiries and another district attorney probe in Georgia…

April 21, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie delivered his opening arguments against Donald Trump on Thursday, sounding like the prosecutor he once was and the presidential candidate he might become again. (NHPR)

“Tonight is the beginning of the case against Donald Trump,” Christie said in New Hampshire, where he devoted his entire opening remarks at a town hall meeting to pounding on the former president he once supported.

“You’re not going to beat someone by closing your eyes, clicking your heels together three times and saying ‘There’s no place like home.” That’s not going to work,” he said. “In American politics you want to beat somebody? You have to go get them.”

Christie called out several Republican candidates and potential candidates – including former Vice President Mike Pence and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley – for barely uttering Trump’s name and argued that Trump’s policy and character failures would only grow if he returns to office…

May 7, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) warned on Sunday that a potential rematch between former President Trump and President Biden in 2024 would be “bad for the Republican Party.” (The Hill)

“I’m very concerned that what we’re heading towards is a Trump-Biden rematch,” Christie said in an interview with radio talk show host John Catsimatidis on WABC 770 AM’s “Cats Roundtable”. “A Trump-Biden rematch is bad for the Republican Party.”

“Donald Trump has done nothing but lose since he won the election in 2016,” Christie continued. “We lost the House in 2018. The Senate and the White House in 2020. We under-performed in 2022 and lost more governorships and another Senate seat. Donald Trump cannot win.”

Christie, who is considering a 2024 bid of his own, has sought to position himself as the Republican candidate who can take on Trump…

…The only way to beat the front runner is to take the front runner on directly,” he added.

May 31, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is expected to announce his 2024 Republican candidacy for president next Tuesday in New Hampshire, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: Christie, 60, is a former close Trump ally who now calls the former president a “coward” and a “puppet of Putin.” He gives traditional Republicans a horse – but seems to have a narrow market in today’s GOP…

…Here’s what to expect from a Christie candidacy, per his team:

Being joyful and hitting a more hopeful note aimed at America’s “exhausted majority.”

Being authentic – a happy warrior who speaks his mind, takes risks and is happy to punch Donald Trump in the nose. Christie’s recent interviews and new Hampshire town halls aim to recapture the brio of his 2009 governor’s race.

Running a national race – “a non-traditional campaign that is highly focused on earned media, mixing it up in the news cycle and engaging Trump,” an adviser said. “Will not be geographic dependent, but nimble.”…

June 10, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a GOP presidential candidate for 2024, said the details of the federal indictment against former President Trump are “devastating.” (The Hill)

“The fact is that these facts are devastating,” Christie told CNN’s Jake Tapper in an interview Friday.

Christie noted that the indictment accuses Trump of directing which documents were to be packed in boxes upon leaving the White House at the end of his presidency, that they should be sent to Mar-a-Lago and where they should be placed while they were at Mar-a-Lago.

He said Trump is also accused of directing the documents to be taken with him to his golf club in Bedminister, N.J., when he went there during the summer and continuing to “stonewall” investigators who were trying to get the documents returned to government recordkeepers.

“The bigger issue for our country is, is this the type of conduct that we want from someone who wants to be president of the United States?” Christie said…

June 12, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) suggested that Americans shouldn’t be worried about a possible federal abortion ban if he was elected president, as Republican challengers have faced increasing pressure to adopt stricter abortion policies. (The Hill)

“What I stand for, Anderson, is what conservative have been arguing about for 50 years, which is that Roe [v. Wade] was wrong, there’s no federal constitutional right to an abortion and that the states should decide. And I absolutely believe that each state should make their decision on this,” Christie told host Anderson Cooper during a CNN town hall Monday.

“The federal government should not be involved unless and until there’s a consensus around the country from the 50 states making their own decisions about what it should be. And if at that time, there’s a consensus that has emerged, well then, that’s fine,” he added…

June 12, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) argues that former President Trump “will care less about the country this time than he did four years ago” as he seeks to make that case against reelecting Trump in 2024. (The Hill)

Christie argued agains the idea of reelecting Trump or President Biden during a CNN town hall in New York on Monday, saying that “if those two people are the nominees, they are going to be a combined 160 years old on Election Day.”

Biden is 80 years old and Trump is 76 years, meaning they are a combined 156 years old.

The former New Jersey governor said of Biden that he didn’t want to see Biden reelected because “I disagree with President Biden, vehemently, philosophically.” But he argued that Trump also shouldn’t be reelected because “he will care less about the country this time than he did four years ago. This is personal now.”…

…Christie announced his 2024 White House bid last week, though his campaign is considered a longshot in the crowded 2024 GOP primary. He’s pitched himself as chief Trump antagonist, arguing Republicans need to move on from the former president…

June 1, 2023: ABC News is suspending its relationship with Chris Christie in light of his reportedly imminent announcement that he is once again running for president, a spokesperson confirms to Media Matters.

He leaves ABC News – at least temporarily – after having used the platform to remake his image in the eyes of elite media…

…Christie used his perch at ABC News to defend Trump, especially at critical moments. He gave Trump’s final State of the Union an A-plus. When Trump at a debate told the Proud Boys to “stand back and stand by,” Christie defended the remarks. After the election, multiple Proud Boys were convicted of seditious conspiracy charges related to their role in the January 6 attack. Days before the 2020 election, Christie also assured ABC News viewer that Trump would concede the election if he lost. Whoops. Months after the January 6 attacks, Christi even showed up on Fox News to attack then Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) for standing up to Trump…

June 6, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is set to launch his presidential campaign on Tuesday night, joining a crowded – and still growing – GOP primary field. (ABC News)

Christie will announce a town-hall style event in New Hampshire, a key early primary state event in New Hampshire, a key primary state. The event is being hosted by the New Hampshire Institute of Politics outside Manchester.

Earlier on Tuesday, Christie filed his campaign paperwork with the Federal Election Commission.

He will be joining a field that is currently led by former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Other primary contenders include former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and tech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy…

…Christie’s campaign, which is expected to feature a sprawling offensive against Trump, marks a full-circle moment for the former governor, who quickly endorsed Trump after dropping out of the 2016 presidential race and largely remained a vocal ally during Trump’s four years in the White House.

However, Christie broke with Trump over the Jan. 6 2021, insurrection and has remained one of his loudest critics within the GOP, including as a then-ABC News contributor frequently appearing on programs like “This Week.”…

June 6, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie kicked off his second presidential campaign on Tuesday with a lacerating indictment of former President Donald Trump, calling his ally-turned rival a “lonely, self-consumed mirror hog” who, by force of personality alone, represents a threat to the republic. (CNN)

At a town hall event in New Hampshire, Christie – who endorsed Trump after dropping out of the 2016 primary and then became a close adviser to the former president ahead of the 2020 election – described his past support as an error and urged Republicans to join him in rejecting the GOP front-runner.

“Beware of the leader in this country, who you have handed leadership to, who has never made a mistake, who has never done anything wrong, who when something goes wrong it’s always someone else’s fault. And who has never lost,” Christie said of Trump.

Nearly 30 minutes after he began speaking, Christie made his declaration.

“I can’t guarantee you success, but I can guarantee you that at the end of it, you will have no doubt in your mind who I am and what I stand for whether I deserve it,” he said. “That’s why I came back to New Hampshire to tell all of you that I intend to seek the Republican nomination for President of the United States in 2024.”…

…Christie’s announcement Tuesday, which followed his filing with the Federal Election Commission earlier in the day, came a day after fellow GOP moderate Chris Sununu, the governor of New Hampshire, opted against running and less than 24 hours before Vice President Mike Pence officially enters the race. Like in 2016, Christie is seeking to appeal to more traditionally conservative, establishment-friendly Republicans – and hope that he can emerge as a foil to Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in a rapidly growing field…

June 7, 2023: As former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie enters the 2024 race for the White House, he has one mission: to torpedo Donald Trump’s campaign. But his low popularity among Republicans may thwart his efforts to launch a head-on attack. (BBC.com)

Seven years ago, his failed bid for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination featured debate-stage fireworks, disappointing voting results and a surprisingly early endorsement of Mr Trump.

Now, Mr Christie will need to take the current front-runner down a peg and then position himself as the one who can win.

In a speech kicking off his campaign, the former governor went on the attack, calling Mr Trump a “lonely, self-consumed, self-serving mirror hog.”

“Donald Trump made us smaller by dividing us even further and pitting one group against another, different groups against different groups every day,” he added….

June 10, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a GOP presidential candidate for 2024, said the details of the federal indictment against former President Trump are “devastating”.

“The facts that these facts are devastating,” Christie told CNN’s Jake Tapper

June 23, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) this week said he opposes state laws that ban gender-affirming care for transgender young people, distancing himself from other Republicans on what is already shaping up to be a key issue in the race for the White House in 2024. (The Hill)

Christie said in a June 18 interview with Jake Tapper said that states should abandon efforts to ban or restrict gender-affirming health care for transgender children and adolescents, replacing them with policies that prioritize parental involvement in transition-related care for minors.

“I don’t think that the government should ever be stepping into the place of parents in helping move their children through a process where those children are confused or concerned about their gender,” said Christie, who launched his 2024 presidential bid earlier this month. “The parents are the people who are the best positioned to make these judgements.”

“What I’d like to make sure each state does is require that parents be involved in these decisions,” he continued, later adding: “Folks who are under the age of 18 should have parental support and guidance and love as they make all of the key decisions of their life, and this should not be one that’s excluded by the government in any way.”…

September 8, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is still a Republican – after all, he’s running for that party’s presidential nomination, as he unsuccessfully did in 2016. But today, his views on Ukraine, on abortion and on other issues put him out of step with many in the party he hopes to lead. (NPR)

“Look, I think our country is in a much different place. And I think I’m a much different candidate than I was eight years ago,” Christie told NPR. “And I got into this race because I felt like no one was making that case. No one was willing to take the case directly to Donald Trump as to why he and through his conduct had disqualified himself for ever being president of the United States again. I want to make that case. I’ve been making that case. I think it’s important not only for my party, but for our country.”…

November 9, 2023: As President Joe Biden seeks to reassure Muslim American voters amid the Israel-Hamas war, the White House knocked Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for downplaying what he called “so-called Islamophobia” at the GOP presidential debate Wednesday night. (NBC News)

“In what is a heartbreaking crisis, violence and hateful rhetoric against Muslims and Arab Americans and Sikhs is spiking across our country,” White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said Thursday in a statement to NBC News. “President Biden believes we have an urgent duty to come together as Americans and stand against every form of hate. It is not leadership to denigrate the very real pain that Islamophobia is causing: it is cynical and cruel. Nor is it leadership to spread the dangerous pretense that fighting against one kind of hate somehow subtracts from fighting another; that is only a sign of a desperate need for self-reflection.”

In the debate, DeSantis and some of the other Republican candidates said the government should focus on combatting antisemitism, not Islamophobia.

“What is Biden doing? Not only is he not helping the Jewish students who are being persecuted, he is launching an initiative to combat so-called Islamophobia. No, it’s the antisemitism that’s spiraling out of control. That is what we have to confront,” DeSantis said.

The White House on Thursday noted that Biden in May rolled out what was billed as the first-ever U.S. national strategy to fight antisemitism, months before he launched a similar effort to combat Islamophobia. Late last month, the White House announced an effort to counter antisemitism on college campuses….

…Muslims Americans voted overwhelmingly for Biden in 2020. But community leaders in swing states hav said they will defect from the president over his full-throated support of Israel.

November 16, 2023: GOP presidential candidate Chris Christie warned that former President Trump’s rhetoric, including his recent ‘vermin’ comment, could incite others. (The Hill)

“Well, I think that what he’s done with his use of language is to give permission to a lot of people who then believe they can take it even further.” Christie told CNN anchor Jake Tapper on “The Lead” on Wednesday. “And they can actualize the things that he said, weaponize the things that he’s saying. And most people won’t use that type of language, because they know there’s a risk of that.”

“He doesn’t care. He just doesn’t care, Jake. I mean, his view is if it’s good for him at that moment, he’ll do it,” the former New Jersey governor added.

Christie’s comments came after the former president pledged in remarks in New Hampshire over the weekend that if reelected, he would “root out the communists, Marxists, fascists, and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country,” warning of the “threat from within.”…

November 19, 2023: 2024 GOP presidential candidate Chris Christie on Sunday called tech billionaire Elon Musk’s antisemitic post “unacceptable,” as other GOP candidates have dodged the issue. (The Hill)

When asked by Kristen Welker on NBC News’s

November 25, 2023: Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie on Sunday said former President Trump’s “intolerant” language contributed to widespread intolerance, including the recent rise of antisemitism in the United States. (The Hill)

“When you show intolerance towards everyone, which is what he does, you give permission as a leader for others to have their intolerance come out,” Christie said in an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday, referring to Trump.

“So intolerance towards anyone encourages intolerance towards everyone. And that’s exactly what’s going on here,” he said…

November 26, 2023: 2024 GOP Presidential primary candidate Chris Christie slammed calls for voters to consolidate their support behind either his campaign or fellow candidate Nikki Haley’s. (The Hill)

“The idea of people just doing math and adding up numbers, that’s not the way voters vote,” Christie said in an interview Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union”. “And, so, I would say to everybody out there: Let’s let the campaign move forward.”…

Asked whether he expects to be in the race through the New Hampshire primary, Christie says he expects to remain in the primary through the convention…

…Christie and Haley have emerged as two candidates with overlapping platforms – both are staunch supporters of Ukraine and Israel, and both are seen as more serious candidates with governing experience. While Christie has been more critical of former President Trump – the distant GOP front-runner in the race – Haley’s platform is more similar to his than to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s platform, which embraces a more expansionist view of executive power…

November 26, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said he plans to stay in the Republican primary race through next summer’s nominating convention, dismissing a recent CNN poll that shows him trailing former President Donald Trump and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley in New Hampshire – a state he’s invested heavily in winning. (CNN)

In an interview Sunday with CNN’s Dana Bash, Christie also brushed off the possibility of working with Haley or dropping out to consolidate support behind a candidate who can mount a serious challenge to Trump, the clear frontrunner in the race.

“I think Gov. Haley and I both have the same goal, and that is to be president of the United States,” Christie said on “State of the Union.” “I think we’re showing great momentum in New Hampshire. We’ve been gaining over the last couple of weeks. I think we’re going to continue to gain in that, in that fight. And I think we’re going to do very, very well in New Hampshire on January 23.”…

November 28, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said Tuesday he would not sign a six-week federal abortion ban as president because he does not believe such legislation aligns with the views of the American public. (CNN)

“One thing I know for sure is there is no consensus around a six-week abortion ban nationally,” the GOP presidential candidate said Tuesday on “CNN This Morning,” pointing to recent victories at the ballot box for supporters of abortion rights since the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling was overturned last year.

Christie has said he personally opposes abortion and that he would only sign a federal bill restricting the procedure if it represented a national consensus, something he acknowledges would be difficult in a divided Congress…

By weighing in specifically on a six-week ban, Christie sought to draw a contrast with some of his Republican rivals on an issue that the party has struggled with following the elimination of federal abortion protections with the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision.

Christie told CNN he thinks his primary rival Nikki Haley’s recent comments saying she would sign a six-week abortion ban in her home state of South Carolina if she were still governor could make her potential general election prospects “much more difficult.”

“You could see when [Gov. Ron] DeSantis signed that bill in Florida, it certainly affected his popularity with a broader electorate,” Christie said, referring to a measure the Florida governor signed earlier this year to ban most abortions in the state after six weeks. (That law is currently on hold as the state Supreme Court decides a challenge to an earlier 15-week ban on the procedure.)…

urged fellow GOP candidate Nikki Haley to attack former President Trump by name. (The Hill)

“I just said his name out loud and lighting did not strike me. I did not fall dead of a heart attack. I have not been poisoned by a member of his staff,” Christie said at a town hall event in New Hampshire. “But you would think when you look at the rest of the folks in this race that they fear that’s what would happen if they said his name.”

Christie, a former New Jersey governor who has become an outspoken critic of Trump, then turned his attention to Haley, a former United Nation’s ambassador, who rolled out her first ad of the GOP primary cycle earlier that day.

Haley has made gains in polling and among donors while not explicitly targeting Trump. Her advertisement said a new generation of conservative leadership is needed and “we have to leave the chaos and drama of the past.”

Christie questioned what she meant by leaving the “chaos and drama” in the past.

“Why not say it?” he asked, pointing to Haley and the other candidates refusal to call out the former president.

“He’s not Voldemort from the Harry Potter books. He’s not he who shall not be named,” Christie said…

December 1, 2023: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) said he is “confident” he will qualify for the fourth GOP primary debate next week. (The Hill)

“I’m confident that I’ll be on the stage for the debate,” he said in a CNN interview Friday. “Remember these same reports were made before the last debate about [Sen.] Tim Scott [R-S.C.], that he did not appear to qualify…

…Presidential hopefuls will need to be polling at 6 percent or higher in two national polls, or at 6 percent in one early state poll from two separate “carve out” states – listed a Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina – to get behind a podium, according to a release from the Republican National Committee. But which polls count for the tallies is unknown…

…A staunch Trump Critic, Christie said Thursday that nominating Trump could be a “death sentence” for Republicans. He’s encouraged fellow GOP candidates to go after Trump more on the campaign trail, particularly Nikki Haley.

“The death sentence is let Trump be our nominee. If Trump is our nominee, we will not only lose the presidency again, but we will lose both houses of Congress and we will lose races up and down the ticket,” Christie said in a NewsNation Interview Thursday…

April 11, 2023: Senator Tim Scott (R-S.C.) will launch a presidential exploratory committee on Wednesday, according to a source familiar, taking him one step closer to formally challenging former President Trump for the GOP nomination in 2024. (The Hill)

The launch comes as Scott makes stops in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina this week. Scott would be the highest-profile figure to jump into the GOP primary field since Nikki Haley, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, announced her bid in February…

…The news comes as Scott prepares to travel to the early presidential contest states of Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina. The senator is expected to launch the committee on the same day that he is in Iowa. An exploratory committee would allow Scott to raise money for future presidential campaign, as well as foot the costs for polling and travel in the run-up to his decision…

April 13, 2023: As Tim Scott moves closer to a formal presidential run, members of his own party are casting doubt on his candidacy amid low polling and a likely crowded field. (The Hill)

South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott moved closer to formally announcing a presidential bid this week with the formation of a presidential exploratory committee. The Republican rolled out a video on Wednesday, laying out his reasons for why he’s considering a run…

…When asked in an interview with CBS News whether he would endorse former President Trump if he is the 2024 GOP nominee, Scott said he plans on being the nominee.

Scott would be the highest-profile figure to jump into the GOP primary field since Nikki Haley, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations announced her bid in February…

April 26, 2023: Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), who launched a 2024 presidential exploratory committee earlier this month, said on Wednesday that he hopes to have a decision on whether to run by the end of May – and that he thinks that, if he does enter the race, he could beat President Biden’s reelection bid. (The Hill)

“I know that I can beat Joe Biden. That is the issue on the table. If I get into this race, and I hope to have a decision before the end of May, I believe that we beat Joe Biden, period.” Scott said on “Fox News Tonight.”…

…If Scott enters the Republican primary ring for 2024, he’ll be up against former President Trump, as well as former United Nation’s ambassador Nikki Haley, conservative entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, former Arkansas Gov Asa Hutchinson and conservative radio host Larry Elder…

May 19, 2023: Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) is gearing up to roll out a $6 million ad campaign, part of what’s expected to an official launch of a presidential campaign Monday (The Hill)

A senior Scott official said that the senator will be launching a $5.5 million multi-platform ad campaign that will air on TV, radio, satellite and cable statewide in the early presidential primary states of New Hampshire and Iowa.

A separate seven-figure digital ad buy will also be launched. Both ad campaigns will air until the first GOP debate…

…Scott is anticipated to announce Monday that he’ll officially be running for president. Scott launched an exploratory committee last month and has been making trips to states early primary states, including Iowa and his home state of South Carolina…

May 21, 2023: Sen. Tim Scott’s (R-S.C.) decision to jump into the 2024 presidential field on Friday has put questions of how he will navigate his identity as a Black Republican front and center. (The Hill)

Scott, the only Black member of his party in the Senate, has spent much of his career skirting around his identity. Although he has acknowledged growing up in a poor, single-parent household and coming “from cotton to Congress,” he has also pushed back against arguments around race and representation to focus instead on conservative policy.

Some say this strategy will not work if Scott wants to be successful in his journey to the White House…

…Democrats have become increasingly worried about Black voter support because policies addressing some of Black Americans’ top concerns – including federal protection against restrictive voting laws, student loan debt relief, criminal justice reform and police reform measures – have stalled under the Biden Administration.

Still, only about 1 in 10 Black adults identify with the Republican Party, according to a survey by Pew Research Center…

May 22, 2023: Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) formally announced Monday that he will seek the GOP’s 2024 presidential nomination, jumping into a primary battle that has so far centered around former President Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. (The Hill)

Scott announced his decision at his alma mater, Charleston Southern University, in a speech drawing on his biography of growing up poor in North Charleston, S.C., and eventually ascending to the Senate…

…Scott’s announcement makes him him the sixth major candidate to enter the 2024 Republican presidential primary, putting him on a list that also includes Trump, former United Nation’s Ambassador Nikki Haley, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, former Gov. Asa Hutchison and radio host Larry Elder.

The field is likely to grow even larger later this week, with the expected announcement of DeSantis’s campaign…

June 6, 2023: Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) took a jab at former President Obama this week after the Democrat criticized the declared 2024 GOP presidential contender over his remarks about racial progress in this country. (The Hill)

“Let us not forget we are a land of opportunity, not a land of oppression. Democrats deny our progress to protect their power. The Left wants you to believe faith in America is a fraud and progress in our nation is a myth,” Scott said in a statement Thursday.

“The truth of MY life disproves the lies of the radical Left. We live in a country where little Black and Brown boys and girls can be President of the United States. The truth is – we’ve had one and the good news is – we will have another,” he added.

The South Carolina Republican’s remarks are in response to comments Obama made during a podcast interview with his former White House senior advisor David Axelrod published Thursday. The former president, who was asked about Scott’s messaging on race, suggested Scott was not offering solutions for how to tackle systemic racism within the country or acknowledging the difficulties Black Americans face…

November 12, 2023: Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina announced Sunday night that he is dropping out of the 2024 Republican presidential campaign, shocking a TV interviewer and even his own campaign staff with an abrupt departure from the race. (NBC News)

“When I go back to Iowa, it will not be as a presidential candidate. I am suspending my campaign,” Scott said in an appearance on former GOP Rep. Trey Gowdy’s Fox News program.

“I think the voters, who are the most remarkable people on the planet, have been really clear that they’re telling me: not now,” Scott continued.

The announcement was a surprise: Gowdy, a former colleague of Scott’s in the House of Representatives, appeared to do a double-take as he made his statement. Multiple Scott staffers told NBC News they got no warning he was ending the campaign, finding out only by watching him on TV.

Scott’s campaign even sent out a fundraising email not long before he announced he was leaving the race. “We want to give you ONE LAST CHANCE to donate this weekend and help Tim reach his campaign goal. Can you chip in to help Tim win?” the campaign wrote…

January 23, 2023: Evangelical pastor Franklin Graham, a longtime supporter of President Trump, says he will not endorse Trump – or any candidate – in the 2024 GOP presidential primary… (The Hill)

CBS noted Graham doesn’t generally endorse primary candidates, but his remarks come as tensions have been rising between evangelical groups and Trump in the months after he announced his third bid for president. Trump said in an interview earlier this week that evangelical leaders are showing “signs of disloyalty” because they have yet to endorse his 2024 campaign…

…Another prominent evangelical pastor, Robert Jeffress, also declined to endorse Trump, saying in an interview with The Hill on Friday that he does not see “a need to make an official endorsement two years out.” He said that former Vice President Mike Pence would be a “strong contender” if he decided to run in 2024…

March 3, 2023: Former President Donald Trump lashed out at Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday, using his 2024 debut speech in Iowa to rehash his longtime 2020 campaign claims and attack his would-be political rival days after the Florida Republican made an appearance in the Hawkeye state. (The Hill)

In a campaign event in Davenport that was billed by Trump’s campaign as an address on educational policy, the former president appeared preoccupied by just about anything other than America’s schools.

He boasted about the work he did to “save” the ethanol industry, bragged about how he moved the U.S. Embassy in Israel to Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and rehashed his baseless claim that he was robbed of a second term in the White House by widespread voter fraud…

…Trump’s remarks came during the first Iowa stop of his 2024 presidential bid. He’s been officially seeking the Republican nomination since November, but has largely stayed off the campaign trail…

March 6, 2023: Donald Trump’s age and finances might be keeping him from holding a larger number of campaign rallies compared to his previous presidential campaigns, according to Maggie Haberman, a reporter at The New York Times. (Insider via Yahoo! News)

Haberman, a senior political correspondent who has covered Trump extensively for the past several years, compared the former president’s 2024 run with his previous campaigns on Sunday’s “The Week” on ABC News when asked whether Trump is running a “real campaign.”

“He has serious people running this campaign. There is a difference in terms of how it is put together from 2016 to now,” Haberman said. “We have seen somebody who got attention in 2015 because he was doing all these rallies, and he seemed very in-your-face and everywhere.”

Trump was “omnipresent” in the media in the 2016 election, but “he’s not now,” Haberman said. He launched his 2024 campaign months ago in November, yet his speech on Saturday at the Conservative Political Action Conference was “only his fourth real event,” according to Haberman…

March 9, 2023: An angry Donald Trump erupted Thursday night following a report of a likely indictment against him by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg over hush-money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election. (Raw Story)

“I did absolutely nothing wrong,” he declared on Truth Social. “I never had an affair with Stormy Daniels, nor would I have wanted… an affair” with her, he posted. The expected legal action is aimed at “taking down” the top presidential candidate, he insisted.

“This is a political ‘Witch-hunt,”” Trump claimed, using one of his favorite attack words on any investigation into his activities. The case is “trying to take down the leading candidate, by far, in the Republican Party, while at the same time also leading all Democrats in the poll,” he posted…

…The New York Times reported earlier that an indictment appeared to be near for the former president. Prosecutors had offered Trump the opportunity to testify next week before the grand jury hearing evidence in a potential case against him. Such an offer would likely not be made unless indictments loomed, the newspaper reported.

The Manhattan probe centers on a $130,000 payment to Daniels to keep her quiet about her alleged relationship with Trump ahead of the presidential vote. The payment was made by Michael Cohen, Trump’s former fixer, who has testified that he did so under orders of his boss, and that he was reimbursed by Trump.

March 11, 2023: Former President Trump is reportedly on the brink of facing charges related to a hush money payment during the 2016 campaign, throwing a wrench into the nascent 2024 GOP presidential primary (The Hill)

Trump has already said in interviews that he plans to continue his campaign for the presidency even if he is indicted, and he was defiant in posts on Truth Social late Thursday that that made clear he was undeterred by the latest specter of criminal charges.

But a possible indictment in New York would be another blow for Trump, whose extensive legal woes already has some Republican voters and leaders suggesting it may be time for the party to move on to a candidate with less baggage…

March 13, 2023: Former President Donald Trump is set to return to Iowa Monday evening, signaling a determination to trudge forward with his 2024 White House campaign in the face of a possible criminal indictment. (The Hill)

Trump will deliver an address on education policy in Davenport just days after his would-be rival for the Republican nomination, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, made an inaugural swing through the first-in-the-nation caucus state. The Monday appearance will mark Trump’s first trip to Iowa since announcing his 2024 presidential campaign nearly four months ago.

But it also comes at an uncertain moment for the former president. Prosecutors in Manhattan have reportedly offered Trump a chance to testify in a grand jury investigation of an alleged hush money payment made during his 2016 campaign – a move that suggests that criminal charges could be close.

The ultimate question now, is whether such a legal threat will hobble Trump as he looks to reclaim the GOP nomination next year…

March 15, 2023: President Trump has gotten increasingly aggressive in attacking Ron DeSantis (R) as the Florida governor inches toward a presidential campaign, posing potentially the biggest threat to date to Trump’s bid for the GOP’s 2024 nomination.

While Trump has lobbed plenty of schoolyard taunts and nicknames toward his onetime ally, the former president in recent days showed how he will look to highlight some of DeSantis’s past policy views to dampen support for the governor among Republican voters.

It’s a surprise move for the former president, who wasn’t well known as a policy wonk during his four years at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

Even more surprising, the policy-based attacks have shown some signs of landing as the two Floridians battle ahead of the GOP primary fight…

March 20, 2023: As Donald Trump runs again for the White House, he is dogged by four criminal investigations that have gained momentum, including two focused on Trump’s zealous drive to overturn his 2020 election loss, raising the odds he will face charges in one or more inquiries in coming weeks or months, say former federal prosecutors. (The Guardian)

All four inquiries have accelerated in recent months with numerous subpoenas to close Trump associates and testimony by key witnesses before grand juries in Washington DC, Georgia and New York, that pose growing legal threats to Trump plus several of his ex-lawyers and allies.

Two investigations are homing in on Trump’s nonstop efforts to thwart his 2020 election loss with bogus fraud charges, while others are looking into Trump’s retention of hundreds of classified documents post his presidency, and Trump’s role in a $130,000 hush money payment in 2016 to porn star Stormy Daniels with whom he allegedly had an affair…

April 4, 2023: Former Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) weighed in on Tuesday on the mounting criminal cases against Donald Trump, saying “there’s no way” the former president will return to the Oval Office at this point.” (The Hill)

Republicans “could put up” with the Manhattan case where Trump was arraigned on Tuesday, Kasich said on MSNBC, but a probe into efforts to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia and a Justice Department investigation into his handling of classified documents could “be too much water for him to take.”…

April 11, 2023: Former President Trump said in a new interview that he wouldn’t drop out of the 2024 race for any legal reason as he faces a possible conviction in a case involving hush-money payments. (The Hill)

“Is there anything they could throw at you legally, that would convince you to drop out of the race? If you get convicted in this case in New York, will you drop out?” Fox News’ Tucker Carlson asked Trump in an interview that aired Tuesday night.

“No, I’d never drop – it’s not my thing. I wouldn’t do it.” Trump responded.

Trump was arraigned last Tuesday and charged with 34 felony counts in connection to hush-money payments made to adult-film star Stormy Daniels to cover up an alleged affair. Trump has repeatedly denied any affair and has denounced Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s investigation as politically motivated.

New York law states that falsifying business records escalates to a felony when an individual’s “intent to defraud includes an intent to commit another crime or to aid or conceal the commission thereof.” Each charge carries a maximum four years of jail time, but experts said that first-time offenders rarely [go] to jail over similar charges…

April 14, 2023: A political action committee supporting Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) running for president launched an ad on Friday criticizing former President Trump as a “gun-grabber” over comments he has made supporting gun control legislation. (The Hill)

The ad from the Never Back Down PAC, which was founded by former senior Trump administration official Ken Cuccinelli, states that Trump promised members of the National Rifle association (NRA) to that he would back them but argues he “abandoned us” after Second Amendment right “came under attack.”

The ad features comments Trump made about standing up to the NRA and supporting gun control measures and accuses him of agreeing with prominent Democrats, like Vice President Kamala Harris and Sens. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Diane Feinstein (D-Calif.), on gun control…

…Some comments Trump made include declaring support for red flag laws, which allow individuals to petition a court to try and take away someone’s firearms if they have reason to believe they might pose a danger to themselves or others. The ad also shows Trump supporting a ban on bump stocks, increasing background checks, and raising the minimum age for buying a weapon from 18 to 21.”…

April 14, 2023: Former president Donald Trump on Friday filed his personal financial disclosure, offering the first glimpse into his earnings since leaving the White House. (The Hill)

The 101-page document, filed with the Federal Election Commission because Trump is running for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, provides broad details about how much the former president made on various business ventures. Candidates are not required to report specific dollar amounts, instead disclosing their earnings in assets and broad ranges.

Trump reported making more than $5 million from speaking engagements, and earning between $100,001 and $1 million from CIC Digital, a company that has sold digital images of him via non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

He also reported more than $5 million in royalties from a firm listed as DT Marks Oman LLC, which is one of the former president’s overseas business ventures.

The former president reported that Trump Media & Technology Group Corp., which is tied to the social media platform Truth Social, is valued between $5,000,001 and $25 million, though Trump reported making less than $201 from the company…

April 14, 2023: Former President Trump pledged to be the National Rifle Association’s “loyal friend” at its annual conference on Friday ahead of the 2024 presidential election. (The Hill)

Trump said during remarks at the Indianapolis event that he “saved” the Second Amendment to the Constitution while serving as president and will continue to do so for a long time. He added that he was the “most pro-gun, pro-Second Amendment” president to ever serve…

…He said as president, he would ask Congress to send him a bill to sign to establish a national concealed carry “reciprocity” law, meaning that states would be required to recognize concealed carry permits approved in another state even if their state did not issue an individual a permit to carry.

A bill to establish this passed the House in 2017 but did not advance in the Senate…

April 24, 2023: Former President Trump posted an email titled: “Statement from President Donald J. Trump on Joe Biden’s Announcement” (Note: Donald J. Trump is NOT currently the President of the United States.) From the email:

You could take the five worst presidents in American history, out them together, and they would not have done the damage Joe Biden has done to our Nation in a few short years. Not even close.

Thanks to Joe Biden’s socialist spending calamity, American families are being decimated by the worst inflation in half a century. Banks are failing. Our currency is crashing and the dollar will soon no longer e the world standard, which will be our greatest defeat in over 200 years. Real wages have been falling 24 months in a row – in other words, under Biden, workers have gotten a PAY CUT each and every month for two straight years. We have surrendered our energy independence, just like we surrendered in Afghanistan, which we had just a short time ago – and the price of gasoline just hit a 5-month high, and its going much hire than that…

(Note: There is absolutely nothing in the email that connects to any of what former president Trump put in the above paragraph.)

April 26, 2023: Former President Trump on Wednesday doubled down on his earlier comments that he could skip Republican White House primary debates, suggesting that he’s far ahead enough in recent polling that he doesn’t need to engage. (The Hill)

…Trump said he’s “leading by 40 points” and stressed that “people don’t debate when they have massive leads.” He’s threatened to skip debates several times throughout 2016 and 2020 bids for the Oval Office.

The GOP has announced plans for two primary debates so far – the first set for later this year in Milwaukee and the second to be held at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California at an unset date…

…Recent polling has shown Trump at the front of a hypothetical GOP presidential primary. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who hasn’t announced an official bid, has cropped up as a top possible contender, though some recent results show Trump with a double-digit lead.

At the same time, other polling results indicate that many Americans don’t want Trump, who kicked off his 2024 campaign last year, to run to retake the White House…

May 15, 2023: Former President Donald Trump’s CNN town hall appearance marked a turning point in his media management strategy, as his campaign plans to do more outreach beyond conservative media. (The Messenger)

In his first mainstream media remarks since the New Hampshire event last week, Trump told The Messenger that the network should have boasted about the eyeballs he brought it.

“It was amazed to see that they were traumatized by what took place. They were actually traumatized,” Trump said in a wide-ranging 30-minute interview concerning his campaign. “They should have said ‘we had a tremendous ratings night, one of the best in years, many years,” and spiked the football.”

Until last week, Trump largely confined himself to conservative outlets and was embroiled in such a toxic relationship with the network that his crowds used to chant “CNN sucks!” at his rallies. That dynamic began to change after Trump had a falling out with Fox News over its coverage of his 2020 election loss and once CNN started to reboot its coverage under CEO Christ Licht…

May 23, 2023: Ahead of Donald Trump’s campaign visit to Iowa last week, the Des Moines Water Works Park Foundation made sure it was financially protected from the nation’s bill-skipper-in-chief. (Raw Story)

According to documents obtained by Raw Story through an Iowa public records request, the public operator of Lauridsen Amphitheater in Des Moines, Iowa, compelled the Trump 2024 campaign committee to sign a six-page contract to use the facility for a May 13 rally that was ultimately canceled because of potential tornadoes in the area.

The Water Works Park Foundation charged the Trump campaign $12,900 for rent, not including fencing, parking personnel, and portable toilets, according to the contract, which Trump campaign treasurer Bradley Crate signed.

“Base rent fee is due prior to event, any additional fees as ordered by DJTFP24 will be due within 30 days of the event’s conclusion,” the contract said in bold type, referring to the Trump 2024 campaign. Sam Carrell, executive director of the Des Moines Water Works Part Foundation, said Tuesday that the Trump campaign indeed paid ahead.

“While we don’t offer a refund, we do offer other open make up dates when weather forces a cancellation,” Carrell told Raw Story…

…The contract states that the Trump campaign was required to have a “comprehensive general liability insurance policy, including public liability and property damage, covering its activities hereunder, in an amount not less than One Million Dollars ($1,000,000)…

May 25, 2023: Former President Trump is pushing back on Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s (R) remarks calling on the GOP to reject a “culture of losing” in 2024, saying “Ron is not a winner.” (The Hill)

…Ron’s not a winner because Ron, without me, wouldn’t have won,” Trump added. “If I would have left it alone he would have lost by 30 points or more.”

DeSantis, who is mulling a bid for the White House, said at an event over the weekend that Republicans would win if stye provide a “positive alternative” to President Biden…

…Trump has repeatedly taken credit for DeSantis’s win in the 2018 Florida gubernatorial race. He said in a new interview that DeSantis was as “dead as a doornail” before receiving his endorsement…

May 30, 2023: Former President Trump is returning to his calls to remove birthright citizenship, with his 2024 White House campaign announcing Tuesday he would seek to end it via executive order on his firs day in office. (The Hill)

Trump announced his plan in the 125th anniversary of United States v. Wong Kim Ark, the Supreme Court case that established the constitutional right to birthright citizenship.

The proposal echos a longtime demand of immigration restrictionists and a measure Trump toyed with while in office, attracting criticism from both immigration advocates and legal experts.

Most experts agree that a president does not have the authority to end birthright citizenship through an executive order, primarily because the practice is enshrined in the Constitution.

The 14th Amendment grants citizenship to those “born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof.”

The widely accepted interpretation of that amendment – that it applies to children born in the United States regardless of the parent’s immigration status – has held since an 1898 Supreme Court case involving a U.S. citizen with Chinese parents…

June 6, 2023: Former President Trump said at a Georgia GOP convention event Saturday that his latest indictment is only driving his poll numbers up. (The Hill)

“It’s a horrible thing. It’s a horrible thing for this country,” Trump said of the indictment while in Columbus, Ohio. “I mean, the only good thing about it is, it’s driven my poll numbers way up. Can you believe it?”

The former president also claimed that his fundraising is “through the roof.” Shortly after he was notified of the indictment Thursday, Trump sent out a message to supporters asking for donations…

…Trump has been charged on 37 counts related to his handling of classified materials, according to the indictment that was unsealed Friday. During his speech in Georgia, Trump called the indictment “ridiculous” and “baseless.”…

June 7, 2023: Former President Trump said Friday that he would cancel every Biden administration policy that he described as “brutalizing our farmers” within hours of taking office, if he is elected in 2024. (The Hill)…

…The former president slammed President Biden for slashing ethanol blending levels “by hundreds of millions of gallons” and trying to “totally kill Iowa ethanol and replace it with expensive electric cars.”

“Within hours of my inauguration, I will cancel every Biden policy that is brutalizing our farmers,” Trump said while in the Hawkeye State, the nation’s leading producer of ethanol.

In finalized biofuel blending standards released last month, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reduced how much “conventional” biofuel. which includes corn-based ethanol, would be required for blending in 2024 and 2025, when compared to a previous proposal.

However, the latest standards still represent an increase over previous years, including under the Trump administration…

…Trump has previously touted his administration’s 2019 decision to lift summertime restrictions on the sale of gasoline blended with 15-percent ethanol. However, the decision was ultimately struck down by a federal appeals court in 2021.

The Biden administration is also planning to allow for the year-round sale of 15-percent ethanol blend in eight Midwestern states, including Iowa, starting next summer, according to Reuters.

June 12, 2023: Former President Trump on Monday threatened to appoint a special prosecutor to specifically target President Biden and his family if he’s re-elected to the White House. (The Hill)

Trump’s post on Truth Social represents a brazen pledge to use the levers of government to target political rivals. It comes in the wake of his own indictment by a Justice Department special counsel stemming from his handling of classified materials after leaving office.

In a post on Truth Social written in all capital letters, Trump wrote, “Now that the ‘seal’ is broken, in addition to closing the border & removing all of the ‘criminal’ elements that have illegally invaded our country, making America energy independent & even dominant again, & immediately ending the war between Russia & Ukraine, I will appoint a real special ‘prosecutor’ to go after the most corrupt president in the history of the USA, Joe Biden, the entire Biden crime family, & all another’s involved with the destruction of the country itself!”

The former president lashing out at Biden comes days after the Justice Department unsealed a 37-count indictment that includes 31 counts under the Espionage Act after Trump refused to return classified materials he took with him upon leaving the White House in 2021…

June 12, 2023: The political network financed largely by billionaire Charles Koch is launching a wave of digital ads targeting former President Donald Trump. (CNBC News)

The ads argue that if Trump becomes the Republican nominee next year, it will lead to President Joe Biden winning reelection.

American’s for Prosperity Action, a super PAC that received millions of dollars during the 2022 election cycle from the Charles Koch-chaired Koch Industries and the Koch-backed Stand Together Chamber of Commerce, gave CNBC a first look at some of the new digital ads.

Koch, who’s worth more than $60 billion and his network notched several wins while Trump was in office, including tax cuts and the appointments of multiple conservative Supreme Court justices. The network traditionally backs Republican candidates.

But Koch’s group also had its differences with the former president, including on Trump’s trade war with China. Trump, likewise, ripped the Kochs in a 2018 tweet tirade, saying they’ve become a “total joke in real Republican circles, are against Strong Borders and Powerful Trade.”

One of the spots, titled “Only Way,” has a VoiceOver saying, “The only way Biden wins if if we nominate Trump again.” Another ad, called “No, Thanks,” says, “Trump can’t win” and “we need new leadership.”…

A third clip, named “Biden’s Secret Weapon,” says: “What’s Biden’s secret weapon? Donald Trump as the GOP nominee. Biden wins the White House and gets the House and Senate, too.”…

…The ads are also targeting voters at a tumultuous moment for Trump. He faces arraignment Tuesday in a federal criminal case over his retention of classified and top military and government documents. Trump has referred to the case as the “boxes hoax.”…

June 20, 2023: Donald Trump said his daughter Ivanka Trump and son-in-law Jared Kushner will not serve in his administration if he is elected president again in 2014 because it was “too painful for the family” last time. (HuffPost)

“I said, that’s enough for the family. You know why? It’s too painful for the family,” Trump told Fox News host Bret Baier in an interview that aired in part on Monday.

Baier had asked Trump if he planned to involve his daughter and son-in-law in a hypothetical second administration.

“Nobody has been through what my family has been through,” Trump complained, adding that his daughter had been “making a fortune” with a “really successful line of clothing” before he appointed her as one of his White House advisers.

“When I did this, she was really – she closed it up,” Trump said. “She sort of felt she had to.”

Ivanka Trump shut down her namesake lifestyle brand in July 2018, citing a commitment to work in Washington and following a significant dip in sales…

June 20, 2023: Former President Donald Trump’s support appears to have softened following his indictment and arrest on federal charges, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS. (CNN)

Most Americans approve of Trump’s indictment stemming from his alleged mishandling of classified documents after leaving office, even as 71% say politics played a role in that charging decision.

Though Trump continues to lead the GOP field by a wide margin in the race for the Republican Party’s nomination for president, the poll suggests that his support has declined, as have positive views of him among Republican and Republican-leaning voters. Nearly a quarter now say they would not consider backing his candidacy under any circumstances. The survey also finds that those GOP-aligned voters not currently backing his 2024 bid have different views on his indictment and behavior than those in his corner.

Still, there’s little sign that Republican-aligned voters who aren’t backing Trump consolidating behind any one of his rivals. Nor are they unified around wanting Trump out of the race entirely, or in filing that is primary opponents ought to call him out for his alleged actions in this case…

…In addition to the decline in support for Trump’s candidacy, his favorability rating among Republican-aligned voters has dipped, from 77% in May to 67% now, while the share who say the would not support him for the nomination under any circumstances has climbed, from 16% in May to 23% now. At the same time, there has been a similar increase in the share saying they would not back DeSantis under any circumstances (up 6 points to 21%), while the shares ruling out other top candidates have held roughly steady.

This poll was completed entirely after Trump’s arraignment in federal court last week, and Republican and Republican-leaning voters participating in the poll were asked about the 2024 presidential race before any mention of the charges facing Trump…

June 21, 2023: Donald Trump’s grasp over the GOP primary base appears to be slipping after the news of his second criminal indictment broke this month. (The Independent)

But a new CNN poll shows that even an active prosecution for alleged criminal retention of classified materials hasn’t undone Mr Trump’s lead over his rivals just yet.

The survey, released on Wednesday, found that Mr Trump’s share of the likely GOP primary vote has dropped below 50 per cent – a welcome sign for his multitude of competitors, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Senator Tim Scott.

But the twice-impeached and now twice-indicted former president still remains in the lead, likely frustrating others in the race who are clearly hoping that the president’s legal problems will hamstring his campaign before they ever have to land a blow…

November 3, 2023: Former President Donald Trump picked up another endorsement from a Florida lawmaker – this time from GOP Sen. Rick Scott, who is running for re-election next year. (NBC News)

“I think we all should come together and do everything we can to help him win the nomination so we can beat Biden,” Scott told NBC’s Matt Dixon in his first interview since announcing the endorsement.

Scott is the 12th senator and the 13th member of Florida’s congressional delegation to endorse Trump over Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis. Just Florida GOP Rep. Laurel Lee, who also served in DeSantis’ administration, has backed the governor’s presidential campaign.

Trump has the most congressional endorsements of any presidential candidate by far, with around 70 House members backing Trump in addition to the 13 senators. DeSantis has the next highest number of congressional backers, with five endorsing his campaign…

November 14, 2023: House Speaker Mike Johnson took sides in the presidential primary on Tuesday, endorsing former President Donald Trump. (NBC News)

Johnson’s endorsement breaks with his predecessor, former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who had declined to back a candidate in the GOP primary. Party leaders from both sides in Congress have often stayed neutral until a presumptive nominee emerged from the primaries.

“I’m all in for President Trump,” Johnson told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Tuesday. “I expect he’ll be our nominee. He’s going to win it and we have to make [President] Joe Biden a one-term president.”

Trump had praised the Louisiana Republican during the speaker fight, nicknaming the four-term congressman “MAGA Mike Johnson” in one post on his Truth Social platform.

Johnson was a vocal proponent of Trump’s false claims that the 2020 election was stolen, leading to an amicus brief supporting a Texas lawsuit aimed at tossing out results from four critical states…

…Johnson is the latest member of House GOP leadership to back Trump, joining GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik of New York and Republican Study Committee Chair Gary Palmer of Alabama.

Johnson’s endorsement came the same day that The New York Times unearthed his past criticism of Trump. Johnson reportedly wrote in a 2015 Facebook post that Trump could be “dangerous” and that he “lacks the character and the moral center” to be president.

November 29, 2023: Former President Trump emphasized late Tuesday night that he wants to “replace” the Affordable Care Act – more commonly known as ObamaCare – rather than “terminate” it entirely.

“Getting much better Healthcare than Obamacare for the American people will be a priority of the Trump Administration. It’s not a matter of cost, it is a matter of HEALTH,” he wrote on Truth Social. “America will have one of the best Healthcare Plans anywhere in the world. Right now, it has one of the WORST!”

“I don’t want to terminate Obamacare, I want to REPLACE IT with MUCH BETTER HEALTHCARE,” Trump added in a separate post. “Obamacare Sucks!!!”…

November 29, 2023: Former President Trump is creating new political headaches for Republicans locked in a highly competitive battle to win back the Senate majority by making extreme statements on health care, immigration and other issues unlikely to play well with swing voters in key states. (The Hill)

Trump shook up Republicans on Capitol Hill over the weekend by declaring that if elected president he would make another run at repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act.

The comments posed on Trump’s media platform, Truth Social, caught GOP lawmakers off guard because they haven’t had any serious policy discussions recently about getting rid if the landmark health care law, and there’s no consensus within their party on how to replace it…

…Trump’s call to revive the effort to repeal and replace ObamaCare follows sweeping pledges he’s made to end birthright citizenship for the children of immigrants living in the country illegally and to deputize the National Guard to implement mass deportations.

Trump drew criticism last month by claiming the flow of migrants across the southern border is “poisoning the blood of our country.”…

December 1, 2023: Ohio’s Republican Party endorsed former President Trump in his reelection bid for the White House on Friday. (The Hill)

“President Trump has proven time and again that despite the unhinged and relentless attacks from the radical left, he will never give up on fighting for Ohio’s workers, business and families,” Ohio Republican Party Chair Alex M. Triantafilou said in a Trump campaign press release. “His unapologetic leadership and commitment to putting America First is exactly what we need to reverse course from the failed policies of Joe Biden and Sherrod Brown.”

Ohio’s becomes the first state Republican Party to endorse the former president for 2024, according to reports from multiple outlets.

Trump’s endorsement by Ohio Republicans follows recent wins for liberal causes in the Buckeye State. At the beginning of last month, a majority of voters in Ohio voted for a ballot measure that enshrined abortion rights in the state constitution. Voters also voted to legalize recreational marijuana, making Ohio the 24th state to do so…

Trump told a crowd at his Commit to Caucus event that the attempts by several states to keep him off the ballot next year backfired.

“To be honest with you, I’m much more popular now than I would have been if they didn’t do it,” he said.

Cases were brought forth by voters and advocacy groups seeking to disqualify Trump from running in 2024 and several went to court, including in Michigan, Colorado and Minnesota, for his role in the Jan. 6 2021 attack on the Capitol. Section 3 of the 14th Amendment stipulates that no one can hold office if they have previously engaged in insurrection against the government. Courts found that Trump could remain on the ballot in all three states…

December 4, 2023: Headlines blaring warnings about how a second Trump presidency could slip toward dictatorship on Monday prompted a stiff pushback from the allies of the ex-president, who is topping GOP primary polls jus weeks before the Iowa caucuses. (The Hill)

The Washington Post, The Atlantic, and The New York Times each published stories referencing a “Trump dictatorship” in recent days, arguing a new Trump presidency posed a threat to democracy. The Times wrote a second Trump turn would likely be more radical than his first.

…The Atlantic announced Monday the magazine’s January/Feburary issue would be dedicated to what a second Trump term would mean for immigration civil rights, the Justice Department, climate and more. The magazine’s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, wrote an editor’s note titled “A Warning,” to introduce the series.

The New York Times on Monday published its latest piece in a series focused on what a second Trump term might mean for the country. In it, the reporters noted Trump’s rhetoric on the campaign trail “has attracted growing alarm and comparisons to historical fascist dictators and contemporary populist strongmen.”

And a Washington Post opinion column penned by editor-at-large Robert Kagan headlined, “A Trump dictatorship is increasingly inevitable. We should stop pretending,” made an extensive case that Trump’s reelection could feasibly set the U.S. on a path to becoming a dictatorship…

…I think it’s a very, very real threat and concern,” former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), an outspoken Trump critic, told NBC’s “Today” on Monday when asked about the risk of the U.S. becoming a dictatorship under Trump.

“And I don’t say any of this lightly and frankly, it’s painful for me as someone who has spent her whole life in Republican politics, who grew up as a Republican to watch what’s happening to my party and to watch the extent to which Donald Trump himself has basically determined that the only thing that matters is him, his power, and his success,” she added…

December 8, 2023: Former President Trump took a swing Friday at former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) after his stronger debate showing. (The Hill)

“Sloppy Chris Christie is not fit to run for President. He is suffering from Trump Derangement Syndrome,” Trump posted to Truth Social. “According to all, he came in LAST in the debate, and I came in FIRST, as I have in all of the debates, without even being there. MAGA!”

(NOTE: Trump Derangement Syndrome is not real. It does not appear in the DSM-5, and therefore, is NOT a real mental health disorder. Psychologists and psychiatrists would never label a client with a non-existent mental disorder. In addition to Trump Derangement Disorder, there has also been Obama Derangement Disorder, and Bush Derangement Disorder.)

Christie went after the former president during Wednesday’s Republican primary debate. The former New Jersey governor got into a tense back-and-forth with rival candidate Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) over Trump during the event.

“There is no mystery to what he wants to do. He started off his campaign by saying ‘I am your retribution.’ Eight years ago, he said, “I am your voice,” Christie said of Trump.

“This is an angry, bitter man who now wants to be back as president because he wants to extract retribution on anyone who has disagreed with him, anyone who’s tried to hold him accountable for his own conduct, and every one of these policies that he’s talking about are about pursuing a plan of retribution,” Christie contended…

March 7, 2023: Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) used his highly anticipated State of the State address on Tuesday to preview what is expected to be the core message of his likely 2024 presidential campaign, touting his work transforming Florida into a bastion of conservatism and hinting at more fights to come (The Hill)

Speaking to a joint session of the state legislature as lawmakers kicked off their annual session, DeSantis riffed on his usual talking points: how he pushed back against the so-called “biomedical security state” in his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic; how he fought against “woke” culture; and how Americans were flocking to Florida en masse because of it…

…Less than a hour before his address, Republican lawmakers in the state House and Senate filed bills that would ban abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. DeSantis signed a 15-week ban on the procedure last year, though he has said that he would sign tougher restrictions into law…

…DeSantis has said that he will make a decision on his 2024 plans once the legislative session ends in May…

April 13, 2023: Former Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) on Thursday encouraged Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) “to make up his mind” about 2024 as anticipation builds that the governor could launch a presidential bid and get in the GOP primary ring with former President Trump. (The Hill)

“He’s got one leg, one foot in running for president and the other one not,” Kasich, who ran against Trump for the presidential primary in 2016, said of DeSantis on MSNBC. “And, I mean, one of the issues is: you got to jump in at some point.”…

…Trump, who lost his 2020 reelection bid to President Biden, announced his 2024 campaign just after the November midterms. DeSantis has repeatedly polled as the top potential contender for a hypothetical GOP primary alongside Trump, but has been coy about whether he’ll get into the race…

May 11, 2023: Two high-profile Iowa Republicans – Senate President Amy Sinclair and House Majority Leader Matt Windschitl – are endorsing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ potential presidential bid as he returns to the state this weekend ahead of a likely presidential run. (Des Moines Register)

DeSantis is scheduled to hold a pair of events Saturday in Sioux Center and Cedar Rapids – the same day former President Donald Trump is set to appear at a rally in Des Moines.

Trump and DeSantis are on a potential collision course in the first-in-the-nation caucus state, which could have a more important role than ever in helping determine the course of the Republican presidential primary as Trump opponents hope to coalesce around a viable alternative.

The endorsement from two well-known, deeply conservative Iowa Republicans underscores the desire among many in the GOP to move on from Trump, even as he continues to claim a firm grasp on a sizable chunk of the Republican base…

May 16, 2023: In late April, Juliet Harvey-Bolia, a Republican New Hampshire state representative, was one of dozens of elected officials whose endorsements former President Donald Trump announced at a packed rally in Manchester. (NBC News)

On Tuesday, officials at Never Back Down, the super PAC backing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, said Harvey-Bolia is throwing her support to their guy. She is one of four New Hampshire legislators – the other are Reps. Brian Cole, Lisa Smart and Debra DiSimone – whom Never Back Down identified as flipping from Trump to DeSantis as it rolled out endorsements from 51 lawmakers in the state who signed a pledge to back DeSantis.

But that’s not how Harvey-Bolia sees it.

“I’m endorsing both,” she said in a telephone interview. “DeSantis has a lot of promise for the future, and Trump is great now.”

Smart, one of the other three legislators, said Tuesday that she remains with Trump – dropping DeSantis’ total to 50 state lawmakers…

…The unusual dual endorsement and Smart’s reiteration of her support for Trump added intriguing twists to DeSantis’ efforts to show momentum as he nears making his bid official. Last week, his super PAC revealed endorsements from 37 Iowa legislators just before he launched a three-city tour of the state.

And NBC News confirmed Tuesday that he has summoned his top donors to meetings in Miami on May 25, in conjunction with his expected campaign launch…

May 16, 2023: Florida Gov. RonDeSantis (R) went after former President Trump over his stance on abortion restrictions, saying Tuesday that Trump dodged questions about whether he would sign a bill similar to the six-week abortion ban signed by DeSantis. (The Hill)

Trump said this week in an interview with The Messenger that “a lot of people don’t even know if he knew what he was doing,” when asked about DeSantis’s decision to sign the six week ban, arguing that “many people in the pro-life movement feel that was too harsh.”

DeSantis fired back during a bill signing in Tallahassee on Tuesday, criticizing Trump for not saying whether he would sign a similar bill.

“I think that as a Florida resident, you know, he didn’t give an answer about ‘would you have signed the heartbeat bill that Florida did.”” DeSantis said. “He won’t answer whether he would sign it or not.”

The bill in Florida, which DeSantis signed last month, has infuriated abortion rights advocates. But the governor defended his decision to endorse the law…

May 19, 2023: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is coming up on the zero hour for his long-anticipated 2024 campaign launch. (The Hill)

After months of travel, preparations and posturing, the governor is set to file paperwork next week declaring his candidacy for the GOP’s 2024 presidential nomination, a person familiar with the plans told The Hill. The filing is expected to come just before he meets with donors in Miami.

His formal entrance into the race will end months of speculation that have swirled around a deeply conservative governor who quickly emerged as one of the country’s most prominent and influential Republicans…

…There has been little doubt about DeSantis’s intentions. He began touring the country earlier this year to promote his latest book – a move that was widely viewed as a soft launch for an eventual campaign. And he’s steadily assembled a political team, brining in veteran campaign staffers and consultants and expanding his once-small political circle…

May 20, 2023: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is running into early problems as he tries to cast former President Donald Trump as a loser while opening his presidential campaign. (The Hill)

DeSantis and his allies have focused on Trump’s losing record in recent elections to set up the Florida governor as a worthy alternative to the ex-president with GOP primary voters. DeSantis has specifically told GOP voters to “reject the culture of losing.”

“Governing is not about entertaining. Governing is not about building brand or talking on social media and virtue signaling. It’s ultimately about winning and producing results,” DeSantis told voters during a recent stop in Iowa in a swipe at Trump without naming the former president.

…Casting Trump as a loser also forces DeSantis to wade into the 2020 election. Trump lost that election, but many GOP voters refuse to accept it, and DeSantis himself has danced around the issue and avoided saying whether he believes the result was rigged or fraudulent…

May 21, 2023: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) appears, finally, to be ready to enter the presidential race. (The Hill)

DeSantis, who has long been seen as the most serious rival to former President Trump for the GOP nomination, has been running a quasi-campaign for months, backed by a big-spending super PAC.

But now multiple reports suggest the Florida governor will enter the race next week.

He is expected to file paperwork making a bid official around Wednesday or Thursday – the days when he has scheduled a gathering of campaign donors in Miami….

May 23, 2023: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will announce he is running for president during a discussion with Twitter CEO Elon Musk, three sources familiar with the plans told NBC News. (NBC News)

Musk and DeSantis will host an event on Twitter Spaces, the site’s platform for audio chats, on Wednesday at 6 p.m. ET. It will be moderated by David Sacks, a tech entrepreneur who is a Musk confidant and DeSantis supporter.

That same evening, the campaign will release a launch video, and DeSantis will begin visiting several early states after Memorial Day.

The relationship could be a significant boost for DeSantis by giving him an introduction to, and credibility with, Musk’s massive following – including his 140 million Twitter followers. But it could prove a burden should DeSantis become distracted by the tycoon’s many controversial comments…

…The announcement will coincide with a retreat for high-end fundraisers pledged to support DeSantis in Miami. Bundlers will gather at the Four Seasons hotel from May 24-26, receiving briefings from campaign staff, combined with time to call around to raise money for the campaign…

May 30, 2023: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is eyeing a critical opportunity to counter former President Donald Trump in Iowa as he sets off on his 2024 White House campaign. (The Hill)

Even as Trump has taken an early lead in national polls, Republicans see an opening for DeSantis in the storied, first-in-the-nation caucus state, a traditional proving ground and potential source of early momentum for White House hopefuls.

Not only has he already racked up a long list of endorsements from prominent Iowa Republicans, but a super PAC supporting his campaign has launched an extensive vote contact and organizing operation in the state and he began his 2024 campaign tour in West Des Moines on Tuesday evening…

…Even before his campaign launch last week, Never Back Down, the main super PAC backing DeSantis’s presidential bid, rounded up endorsements from dozens of Iowa state legislators and helped organize a crowd to attend an impromptu appearance by DeSantis in Des Moines.

The group has also hired a team of 10 staffers and nearly 200 canvassers in Iowa to begin reaching out to caucus-goers and has already knocked on more than 50,000 doors in the state, according to a spokesperson. The super PAC’s canvassers are being trained out of an office in West Des Moines…

May 30, 2023 – updated May 31, 2023: Standing before a 20-foot American flag in an evangelical church in Iowa, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis made his first appearance as a presidential candidate. (Des Moines Register)

“The tired dogmas of the past are inadequate for a vibrant future. We must look forward, not backwards,” DeSantis said. “We must have the courage to lead, and we must have the strength to win, because the stakes couldn’t be higher.”

A few hundred supporters packed into Eternity Church in Clive, filling the seats of the small auditorium and standing along the grey cinderblock walls. Cheering drowned out the music when Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds welcomed DeSantis to the stages as he took the podium.

It was the first public campaign event since DeSantis launched his presidential campaign last week in a Twitter even marred by technical difficulties…

…As governor, DeSantis has signed legislation to ban instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation, to remove funding for diversity, equity and inclusion offices at state colleges, to restrict care for transgender individuals, and to prohibit the teaching of “critical race theory,” which argues that the U.S. still struggles with systemic racism…

June 6, 2023: Ron DeSantis ventured far from the usual presidential campaign trail Saturday, heading to a rodeo in reliably red Oklahoma to make the case that he’s the top alternative to Donald Trump – even as the former president’s indictment threatens to upend the 2024 Republican primary race. (The Hill)

The Florida governor sought to project strength by campaigning in one of the more than a dozen states scheduled to hold GOP primaries on Super Tuesday next March, weeks after the earlier states vote. He also notched the endorsement of Republican Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, the first governor to formally announce his support for DeSantis.

DeSantis says his record has put him at the cutting edge of the next generation of Republicans. But addressing a sweat-soaked audience fanning themselves with yard signs, the governor introduced a loftier theme, asking Americans to embrace his call for new national leadership…

June 6, 2023: California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) said he would agree to a debate with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) moderated by Fox News host Sean Hannity.

“I’m all in. Count on it,” Newsom told Hannity during a sit-down interview on Fox News that aired Monday.

“You would do a two-hour debate with Ron DeSantis?” Hannity asked.

“Make it three,” Newsom responded. “I would do it one day’s notice with no notes. I look forward to that.”

Tensions between the two governors have grown after a dozen migrants from the Texas border were flown to Sacramento, Calif. The Florida Division of Emergency Management confirmed last week that the state was behind the recent migrant flights to California…

…Sixteen South American migrants who entered the country through Texas were dropped of outside the Roman Catholic church in Sacramento earlier this month after boarding a private plane. California Attorney General Rob Bond (D) said he met with the migrants and that there was “no prior arrangement or care in place,” for them. He also aid the migrants were carrying documentation form Florida…

June 7, 2023: Questions surrounding Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s (R) presidential campaign strategy are multiplying as he continues to trail former President Trump in the polls nearly a month after his highly anticipated campaign launch. (The Hill)

In a sign of just how concerned some of the governor’s allies are, the spokesperson for the pro-DeSantis PAC Never Back Down recently referred to Trump as the “runaway front-runner: in the primary and that DeSantis faced an “uphill battle.”

Meanwhile, DeSantis’s campaign faced backlash this week after sharing a video attacking Trump over his past comments in support of the LGBTQ+ community, leading some Republicans to raise concerns…

…There are still reasons for allies of the governor to be worried. Around the same time [Steve] Cortes’s comments surfaced, the DeSantis campaign’s “war room” sparked outrage and confusion with a video attacking Trump over LGBTQ+ rights, including for comments the former president made in support of the community after the deadly Pulse nightclub shooting in Florida in 2016.

Among those who criticized DeSantis were LGBTQ+ Republicans including Rep. George Santos (N.Y.) and 2024 rivals including former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie…

June 10, 2023: Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) endorsed Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis on Saturday, after several fellow Republicans from the Sooner State threw their weight behind the Florida governor’s 2024 bid earlier this week. (The Hill)

…The Florida governor, who traveled to Tulsa, Okla. on Saturday afternoon, received endorsements from a former Oklahoma congressman and 20 state lawmakers on Thursday.

…Stitt’s comments on the Florida governor’s COVID-19 record comes as DeSantis has faced frequent attacks on the issue from former President Trump, who remains the frontrunner in the race for the Republican nomination.

Trump has repeatedly criticized DeSantis for instituting a lockdown in the early months of the pandemic, as well as for the state’s deaths from COVID-19. However, Florida ranked in the middle of the pack in terms of coronavirus death rate in 2021…

…DeSantis has previously taken aim at Trump’s ability to serve for only one more term, saying that it “really does take two terms as president to be able to finish the this job.”

June 10, 2023: Casey DeSantis, is set to play a central role in her husband’s campaign for the White House. (The Hill)

Florida’s First Lady was front and center with Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) during his campaign kickoff tour last month and earlier this month.

The couple notably brought their three young children to Sen. Joni Ernst’s (R-Iowa) “Roast and Ride” event last Saturday, presenting a youthful, family image to GOP caucus goers in the Hawkeye state.

Many political observers say her charismatic presence is likely to be a boon for her husband, who has drawn criticism over his perceived aloofness and reluctance to embrace retail politics.

“That’s a trait that we often see the first ladies or First Ladies to be,” said Debbie Walsh, director at the Center for American Women in Politics at Rutgers University.” They’re, in a way, humanizing their spouse and filling in some of the ways that they might not be as skilled or adept.”…

…In 2022, DeSantis launched “Mamas for DeSantis,” as a part of her husband’s reelection campaign. The initiative was described as “as a movement for Florida moms, grandmas, abuelas, nana’s, and more to get involved in the re-election campaign.”…

onservatives Saturday at Northern Nevada’s annual Basque Fry – an event that has been solidly Donald Trump country for years. (Reno Gazette Journal)

Many attendees wore Trump shirts and hats while listening to DeSantis’ case for why he should get their vote instead of the former president in February’s 2024 Republican presidential-preference primary.

His 45-minute campaign speech never mentioned frontrunner Trump by name.

DeSantis made it clear, though, that he thinks Trump is more focused on himself than delivering on the overall vision they both seek: beating back what they call radical leftist government that they believe is destroying cities and the nation.

“We need to restore sanity in this country,” DeSantis said. “We need to restore a sense of normality to our communities. We need to make sure our institutions have integrity.”

Holding a cordless microphone, the 44-year-old governor talked casually and quickly, running through numerous problems he sees in the country and how his administration handled them in Florida. These included bureaucracies being too sluggish in responding to disasters, prosecutors who don’t prosecute certain crimes, and school curricula informed by race and gender ideologies…

…Democrats held a news conference Friday in Reno to criticize DeSantis as extreme and linking him to Trump.

“(DeSantis’) MAGA agenda is full of dangerous policies that I believe will hurt Nevadans, including banning abortion, cutting Social Security and Medicare, turning the Silver State into a nuclear waste dump, and peddling baseless claims about the 2020 election,” said Reno city council member Devon Reese.

DeSantis’ record in Florida “is against everything we stand for here in Nevada, and his assault on reproductive freedom and the right to have free and fair elections will not be tolerated…

June 28, 2023: Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis suggested that he would eliminate a number of government agencies during an interview on Wednesday. (The Hill)

“Are you in favor of eliminating any agencies? I know conservatives in the past have talked about the closing of the Department of Education, would you do that?” Fox News’s Martha MacCallum asked the Florida governor on “The Story.”

DeSantis responded with a list of federal departments he would eliminate: “We would do Education, we would do Commerce, we’d do Energy, and we would do the IRS.”

“And so, if Congress will work with me on doing that, we’ll be able to reduce the size and scope of the government,” he added.

“But what I’m also going to do, Martha, is be prepared if Congress won’t go that far, I’m going to use those agencies to push back against woke ideology and against the leftism that we see creeping into all institutions of American life,” he said…

July 6, 2023: The DeSantis campaign announced on Thursday that it had raised $20 million since Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis officially entered the Republican presidential primary six weeks ago, a show of fundraising prowess as DeSantis tries to position himself as the main GOP rival to former President Donald Trump.

The fundraising figures, reported earlier by Fox News, were celebrated Thursday by DeSantis campaign officials as the “largest first-quarter filing from any non-incumbent Republican candidate in more than a decade.”…

…The DeSantis campaign framed the fundraiser figures as a sign of momentum for his candidacy…

…”We are grateful for the investment so many Americans have made to get this country back on track,” campaign manager Generra Peck said in a news release. “The fight to save it will be long and challenging, but we have built an operation to share the governor’s message and mobilize the millions of people who support it. We are ready to win.”…

…The announcements follow reports Wednesday from the Trump campaign and his leadership political action committee, Save America, that they together raised $35 million for the second quarter of 2023, despite state and federal indictments of the former president. The second-quarter state and federal indictments of the former president. The second-quarter figures were more than double what the Trump campaign and Save America raised in the first quarter of 2023.

DeSantis, who is currently in second place in national polls of GOP voters, has lagged in recent weeks amid concerns about the public demeanor and hiccups with local groups in key primary states. DeSantis allies and officials, however, have voiced confidence that the campaign is trending in the right direction ahead of primary debates and early contests and remains the clearest alternative in the GOP field to the former president.

onservatives Saturday at Northern Nevada’s annual Basque Fry – an event that has been solidly Donald Trump country for years. (Reno Gazette Journal)

Many attendees wore Trump shirts and hats while listening to DeSantis’ case for why he should get their vote instead of the former president in February’s 2024 Republican presidential-preference primary.

His 45-minute campaign speech never mentioned frontrunner Trump by name.

DeSantis made it clear, though, that he thinks Trump is more focused on himself than delivering on the overall vision they both seek: beating back what they call radical leftist government that they believe is destroying cities and the nation.

“We need to restore sanity in this country,” DeSantis said. “We need to restore a sense of normality to our communities. We need to make sure our institutions have integrity.”

Holding a cordless microphone, the 44-year-old governor talked casually and quickly, running through numerous problems he sees in the country and how his administration handled them in Florida. These included bureaucracies being too sluggish in responding to disasters, prosecutors who don’t prosecute certain crimes, and school curricula informed by race and gender ideologies…

…Democrats held a news conference Friday in Reno to criticize DeSantis as extreme and linking him to Trump.

“(DeSantis’) MAGA agenda is full of dangerous policies that I believe will hurt Nevadans, including banning abortion, cutting Social Security and Medicare, turning the Silver State into a nuclear waste dump, and peddling baseless claims about the 2020 election,” said Reno city council member Devon Reese.

DeSantis’ record in Florida “is against everything we stand for here in Nevada, and his assault on reproductive freedom and the right to have free and fair elections will not be tolerated…

June 28, 2023: Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis suggested that he would eliminate a number of government agencies during an interview on Wednesday. (The Hill)

“Are you in favor of eliminating any agencies? I know conservatives in the past have talked about the closing of the Department of Education, would you do that?” Fox News’s Martha MacCallum asked the Florida governor on “The Story.”

DeSantis responded with a list of federal departments he would eliminate: “We would do Education, we would do Commerce, we’d do Energy, and we would do the IRS.”

“And so, if Congress will work with me on doing that, we’ll be able to reduce the size and scope of the government,” he added.

“But what I’m also going to do, Martha, is be prepared if Congress won’t go that far, I’m going to use those agencies to push back against woke ideology and against the leftism that we see creeping into all institutions of American life,” he said…

July 6, 2023: The DeSantis campaign announced on Thursday that it had raised $20 million since Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis officially entered the Republican presidential primary six weeks ago, a show of fundraising prowess as DeSantis tries to position himself as the main GOP rival to former President Donald Trump.

The fundraising figures, reported earlier by Fox News, were celebrated Thursday by DeSantis campaign officials as the “largest first-quarter filing from any non-incumbent Republican candidate in more than a decade.”…

…The DeSantis campaign framed the fundraiser figures as a sign of momentum for his candidacy…

…”We are grateful for the investment so many Americans have made to get this country back on track,” campaign manager Generra Peck said in a news release. “The fight to save it will be long and challenging, but we have built an operation to share the governor’s message and mobilize the millions of people who support it. We are ready to win.”…

…The announcements follow reports Wednesday from the Trump campaign and his leadership political action committee, Save America, that they together raised $35 million for the second quarter of 2023, despite state and federal indictments of the former president. The second-quarter state and federal indictments of the former president. The second-quarter figures were more than double what the Trump campaign and Save America raised in the first quarter of 2023.

DeSantis, who is currently in second place in national polls of GOP voters, has lagged in recent weeks amid concerns about the public demeanor and hiccups with local groups in key primary states. DeSantis allies and officials, however, have voiced confidence that the campaign is trending in the right direction ahead of primary debates and early contests and remains the clearest alternative in the GOP field to the former president.