Vivek Ramaswamy Accuses Voter of Being Paid to Grill Him Over Suggestion Government Might Kill Trump
Vivek Ramaswamy snapped at an Iowa voter who grilled him about a hole in his argument for why he, rather than former president Donald Trump, should be the Republican presidential nominee, accusing him of being paid to interrogate him.
Hostilities between Trump and Ramaswamy’s campaigns have broken out for the first time this cycle after Trump attacked his younger competitor over the weekend.
“Vivek started his campaign as a great supporter, ‘the best President in generations,’ etc. Unfortunately, now all he does is disguise his support in the form of deceitful campaign tricks,” argued Trump on Truth Social Saturday. “Very sly, but a vote for Vivek is a vote for the ‘other side’ — don’t get duped by this. Vote for ‘TRUMP,’ don’t waste your vote! Vivek is not MAGA. The Biden Indictments against his Political Opponent will never be allowed in this Country, they are already beginning to fall! MAGA!!!”
In a response to Trump’s attack on X, Ramaswamy submitted that “we have to open our eyes.”
“Last time it was a man-made pandemic & Big Tech election interference. Now, the same billionaires funding the lawsuits against Trump are the ones trying to prop up Nikki Haley,” he asserted. “The same MSM blasting Trump is lavishing praise on Nikki. They want to narrow this to a two-horse race between Trump & Haley, eliminate Trump (one way or other), & trot their puppet into the White House.”
On the campaign trail, Ramaswamy’s ominous claim that the establishment will get to Trump “one way or another,” which seemingly entertained the idea that he might be assassinated was challenged by a voter according to The Dispatch’s John McCormack:
That “one way or other” is a dark and not-subtle suggestion that Ramaswamy thinks that “they”—who “they” are is not entirely clear—are willing to “eliminate” Trump by extra-legal means.
That brings us back to Ramaswamy’s encounter with Nathen Trausch at Grimaldi’s Pizzeria. While the exchange remained cordial so long as Trausch’s question was premised on slandering employees of the Department of Defense and CIA, things grew more heated when Ramaswamy dodged Trausch’s question about why Ramaswamy won’t say he’d be willing to be Trump’s vice president.
“They want to narrow this down to a two-horse race between Donald Trump and a puppet who they can control,” Ramaswamy said.
“You always say that,” Trausch interrupted.
“That’s because it’s the truth of what’s happening,” Ramaswamy replied.
“So the government might kill Trump, but they won’t kill you?” Trausch asked. “Because you’re the most anti establishment guy, but—”
Ramaswamy then cut Trausch off, suggesting that he was paid to be there. After the event ended, Trausch said Ramaswamy’s accusation was “not true at all,” telling The Dispatch: “He got frustrated with me, called me a paid actor, so that’s why my vote’s probably going to Trump.”
Ramaswamy is expected to finish in fourth place in Iowa behind Trump, Haley, and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, per the RealClearPolitics polling average in the Hawkeye State.
