Breaking Down The RGA’s Very Bad Week
Donald Trump Continues to Wreak Havoc on Incumbent Governors, While Primary Candidates Are Embracing his Deeply Unpopular Agenda
It’s been another week of chaos and disarray for the RGA. Let’s recap: Trump continues to wreak havoc on incumbent governors and primary candidates. His “complete and total endorsement” of far-right, toxic GOP candidates is driving them to make Trump’s extreme, unpopular agenda the defining issue of primaries — in states where he lost by double digits.
In Maryland, a new poll showed extreme, far-right candidate Dan Cox leading the GOP primary field. Cox beats Kelly Schulz by 34 points when respondents are informed of his Trump-endorsed status. His extreme record has made him the pacesetter in the primary, where 61% of GOP voters believe the Big Lie. Time will tell how it’ll hold up in the general election in a state where Trump lost by 33 points.
In Massachusetts, Trump-endorsed leading GOP primary candidate Geoff Diehl is going all-in on embracing Donald Trump and his toxic agenda — in a state Politico dubbed “one of the bluest, most anti-Trump states in the country.” Diehl has only doubled down on Trumpism since Charlie Baker decided not to run and he just announced he’s hiring Trump’s ousted one-time campaign manager Corey Lewandowski as his senior advisor.
Speaking of Lewandowski, Trump is deputizing his old attack dog for a new mission to get New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu out of office. Trump is apparently “very unhappy” with Sununu, and has tasked Lewandowski with finding someone to replace him.
Donald Trump is also threatening to derail Mike DeWine’s reelection in Ohio, where another new poll released this week showed “significant warning signs” for DeWine. The poll found DeWine getting crushed against a Trump-endorsed candidate (25-55%).
Trump also went after Brian Kemp this week in an ad for David Perdue, saying Kemp “let us down.” RGA Chair Doug Ducey recently told POLITICO that “we’re going to protect our incumbents,” yet, he’s done nothing to stop the direct attacks from the former president on a sitting Republican governor.
It’s a lot, we know. The DGA is compiling a complete rundown on the ongoing saga of chaos for Republican governors at RGAindisarray.com
“Donald Trump’s constant meddling is making incumbent GOP governors extremely vulnerable,” said DGA Communications Director David Turner. “And in primaries, GOP candidates are trying to win voters with a repackaged version of the far-right, unpopular ideology voters in their states thoroughly rejected in 2020. While Republicans run in primaries dominated by Trumpism, Democrats are running on their records of delivering for American families where it counts — creating good-paying jobs, chartering a path to economic recovery, and lowering costs on kitchen-table items.”