Former President Donald Trump will be hitting the campaign trail for the first time since announcing his run for the White House, with appearances in New Hampshire and South Carolina on Saturday. Trump will be the keynote speaker at an annual meeting of the New Hampshire GOP midday Saturday, then head to Columbia, S.C., for an event billed as the announcement of his “leadership team” in the state. His appearances in these two early-primary states, which will play an outsize role in the GOP race, effectively kick off the 2024 GOP campaign season, as many other Republicans take steps toward challenging Trump, though none have officially taken the plunge.
Saturday’s trip will serve as an early barometer of Trump’s support and his message. The former president will be stumping in two states where he triumphed in the 2016 primary, the last time there was an open race for the GOP nomination. However, he has so far struggled to reignite the energy of previous runs and has until now foregone the usual barnstorming after a campaign kickoff. Some Republicans have been openly critical and many longtime allies are holding off on endorsements as a potentially crowded field takes shape, even as polls show Trump at or near the top.
“What campaign?” said Terry Sullivan, the campaign manager for Florida Sen. Marco Rubio’s presidential run in 2016, when asked how he thought Trump’s first couple months were going. He pointed to Trump’s widely criticized dinner with the rapper Ye and Nick Fuentes, both known for their antisemitic views, as his most notable activity since announcing.
Steven Cheung, a spokesman for Trump’s campaign, said in a statement the former president plans this weekend to “unveil his leadership teams, which will show the significant support he has from grassroots leaders to elected officials.” He added, “There is no one else who can generate enthusiasm and excitement like President Trump.”
Yet many Republicans are looking beyond the ex-president as public opinion surveys show that Ron DeSantis would be a formidable Trump challenger, with one finding the Florida governor leading Trump in the Granite State while other candidates trail far behind. The party’s disappointing losses in three straight elections also weigh on the minds of Republicans who blame Trump for elevating flawed and untested candidates who embraced his grievances and false claims in the midterms.
In 2016, Trump ran as an outsider who took aim at the GOP establishment and pulled off an upset; in 2020, he marched to the nomination as an incumbent. Now he is in a more uncertain position and facing several investigations. Saturday’s events will provide more insight into Trump’s pitch to and reception from voters as he competes with DeSantis and other potential rivals for the spotlight. Since launching his campaign in November with a speech at his Mar-a-Lago Club in Florida, Trump has done little in the way of traditional campaign activities, leading some Republicans to question his commitment to the 2024 race. Rather than holding the big rallies he is known for, Trump has blasted out endorsements and policy ideas on Truth Social, his social media platform.
The setup of his campaign stops could further underscore the contrast with past campaigns, as Trump joins Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster (R) and others at a smaller gathering for which allies struggled to enlist wider support. But among critics and allies, few are ready to count out Trump, who has a long history of defying expectations. His campaign won a victory this past week as Meta said it would reinstate Trump’s account on Facebook and Instagram, important fundraising tools for the former president
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