We have some more updates to the 2024 race following the week’s primary in New Hampshire.
First, former President Donald Trump received some high-profile endorsements this week. Texas Sen. John Cornyn praised Trump after the New Hampshire primary, marking a reversal for the congressman after he expressed doubt over Trump’s effectiveness as a candidate.
Cornyn wrote on X that “it’s clear that President Trump is Republican voters’ choice” with the ultimate goal of beating Biden for the Oval Office. He added, “Republicans need to unite around” Trump for this reason, and indicated that he will work to help get Trump elected.
This theme of Republican rallying was also echoed in comments by Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel. She told Fox News that Trump looks like the party’s “eventual nominee.”
McDaniel’s comments were met with some ire as she previously said the GOP would remain “neutral” in this year’s primary. But it seems like Trump’s overwhelming approval in both Iowa and New Hampshire has convinced McDaniel that the time for neutrality has passed.
But just because Trump has momentum, that doesn’t mean former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley is prepared to quit. She is continuing to run against the former president and, during a rally in South Carolina, Haley’s home state, she again challenged Trump to a one-on-one debate.
Trump has yet to attend any GOP-sanctioned debate for the primaries, and, likely, he will not honor Haley’s challenge either.
And despite Haley’s optimism, one top GOP donor is saying she should “walk away” from the 2024 election. Those comments came from Andy Sabin, chairman of the board of Sabin Metals, who spoke to Fox News and gave his thoughts on Haley’s candidacy for this year.
Finally, on the other side of the aisle, President Joe Biden also gained a big endorsement from the United Auto Workers union on Wednesday.
This will likely give him a leg-up in battleground states as a friend to blue-collar workers. But many worry that Biden’s plans for an electric vehicle overhaul are in direct conflict with the UAW’s goals, making this endorsement a potential double-edged sword.