Trump Considering Delaying 2024 Announcement Amid Political, Legal Troubles: CNN

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Former President Donald Trump has reportedly been considering delaying a 2024 presidential run amid political and legal troubles.

Trump has repeatedly all but said that he will run a third time for the White House.

But according to a CNN report on Wednesday by reporter Gabby Orr and correspondent Kristen Holmes:

After months of eyeing Labor Day weekend as the target launch date for a 2024 campaign, Trump has spent the past few weeks backing away from that timeline following the FBI search of his Mar-a-Lago estate and an increased panic among Republicans that the party may not be in for the red wave it has long anticipated this November.

While his timeline could shift again between now and November, the onslaught of political and legal concerns has the former President feeling nervous about prematurely diving into the 2024 primary, according to nine former and current Trump aides and allies who requested anonymity to discuss internal matters.

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Otherwise, advisers say, the former President is more likely to be blamed for potential losses in the midterms if he becomes a candidate for president before November and his legal troubles distract from the bread-and-butter issues most Republicans — but especially those running in competitive races — would prefer to focus on.

The concerns about the GOP not having a red wave in the midterms arise from the generic congressional ballot showing Democrats having a slight advantage and the possibility that the Democrats could keep the Senate due to weak Trump-backed GOP candidates in Pennsylvania (TV host Dr. Mehmet Oz), Arizona (venture capitalist Blake Masters), Ohio (author and venture capitalist JD Vance) and Georgia (college football icon Herschel Walker).

“Everyone was operating under the assumption that shortly after Labor Day would be the best possible time to launch, but that has changed and he’s being told to deal with the FBI stuff first,” an unnamed Trump adviser told CNN.

A former Trump campaign aide told the outlet, “There is a direct tie if Trump becomes a campaign ad in November and Republicans lose the Senate, and the last thing he wants is to be blamed.”