Lindsey Graham Declines to Endorse Trump Right Now: ‘I’ll Tell You After Georgia’
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Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) declined to answer when asked if he is willing to endorse former President Donald Trump if he runs again in 2024.
Trump teased a “very big announcement” the week before the midterm elections, where Republicans did not perform nearly as well as they’d hoped. It is widely expected he will announce his candidacy for president.
Republicans failed to retake the Senate and seem poised to gain only a razor-thin majority in the House. Several high-profile Republicans also lost key state-level races.
Many conservatives are blaming Trump for having an outsized role in the election, for which he endorsed many candidates who falsely claimed the 2020 presidential election had been stolen from him. Trump did not help his cause last week when he publicly lashed out at Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who coasted to reelection and is a popular figure among Republicans potential 2024 GOP presidential nominee.
Trump’s status as de facto party leader is so precarious, even once-staunch allies appear to be hedging on supporting him for president – at least at this time.
“The question is: who is the current leader of the Republican Party? Oh, I know who it is: Ron DeSantis,” Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) told Politico. “Ron DeSantis is the leader of the Republican Party, whether he wants to be or not.”
Another Republican senator echoed that sentiment.
“Looking forward is always a better campaign strategy. Looking back on 2020 obviously didn’t work out. We ought to look forward,” Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) added.
Graham, who has stuck by Trump since 2016 – save for a brief moment after the 2021 Capitol insurrection – stated, “[L]et’s see what he says,” referring to Trump’s announcement. “I’ll tell you after Georgia.”
In December, Georgia will hold a runoff election between Sen. Raphael Warnock (D) and Herschel Walker (R) after neither received a majority of votes in the general election. Trump endorsed Walker and some conservatives have expressed concern about him as a candidate.
Unlike the two Senate runoffs in Georgia in 2020, this race will not determine which party controls Congress, as the Democrats have already secured 50 seats.
