GOP Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson Believes Trump Should Not Be President Again
Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) made it clear on Saturday that he does not want former President Donald Trump to run for — or win — a second term.
“I do not believe Trump is the one to lead our party and our country again, as president,” Hutchinson told Insider during a National Governors Association meeting.
Hutchinson, the chairman of the NGA, told Insider that determining who should be president instead is “what the election is all about,” and noted there’s many possible choices.
“The Republican Party has many different voices,” Hutchinson said. “And it’s important in this time to have those voices and they should be concentrating on this election cycle.”
Hutchinson’s comments follow a video from earlier this week in which Trump called himself both the 45th and 47th president of the United States.
Hutchinson has previously criticized Trump’s stolen election rhetoric, saying that focusing on 2020 is “a recipe for disaster in 2022.”
“Let’s talk about the future. The election has passed, it’s been certified,” Hutchinson said in October. “The states made decisions on the integrity of each of their elections, and made improvements where need be. It’s about the future. It’s not about the last election. And those kind of comments are not constructive.”
Other Republican governors Insider spoke to at the NGA meeting underscored that their priorities currently lie within the states they govern and the upcoming 2022 elections, not the 2024 presidential election.
“Any thought on 2024 is wasted energy at this time,” said Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey. “The elections that are in front of us are 2022, and that’s what I’m focused on as the chairman of RGA.”
And Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt replied that he is “focused on Oklahoma right now, not all the national DC stuff” when asked about a potential Trump 2024 bid.
