Iowa Republicans Literally Ignoring Trump’s Phone Calls About 2024 Campaign, Per Report
AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File
Donald Trump’s calls to some Iowa Republicans aren’t getting answered, according to a new report.
Trump announced his 2024 presidential campaign before anyone other Republican, but it’s remained a question how much influence he still holds over his party. Bloomberg’s Jennifer Jacobs reported on Friday that Trump is struggling to drum up support in Iowa, the state that kicks off the Republican primaries and is seen by many as near-essential to win for eventual nominees.
Trump did prove it is possible to win without Iowa, however, locking down the GOP nomination and eventually winning the general election in 2016 after losing in the state’s primary to Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX).
Both Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds (R) “didn’t answer phone calls” from Trump recently, Jacobs wrote in her report. Other Iowa Republicans are also declining to publicly throw their weight behind Trump going into 2024, according to the new report.
Matt Whitaker, previously the acting attorney general under Trump, reportedly told people he’d consider other potential Republican nominees for 2024 including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL). Iowa conservative talk show host Steve Deace also referred to DeSantis as a “more likable” version of Trump, claiming some Republicans have turned on Trump for supporting Covid lockdown measures early in the pandemic.
“DeSantis is basically a progeny of Trump — but a lot more likeable and a lot more electable,” Deace told Bloomberg.
Trump faces a growing list of potential opponents in 2024, but a recent Harvard CAPS-Harris poll of GOP voters showed him still leading DeSantis and other top Republicans like former Vice President Mike Pence.
