Campaign Report
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Campaign Report
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Trump storms Iowa after DeSantis
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© Associated Press/Alex Brandon
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The former president is set to attend events in the Hawkeye State on Thursday, while pre-recording a town hall with Fox News’ Sean Hannity that will air later at 9 p.m. EDT the same day.
The town hall, which comes just a few weeks after Trump sat for a similar event with CNN, marks the latest media appearance for the former president, who after bashing mainstream and legacy news outlets for years has taken a more willing approach to the press as he looks to reclaim the White House.
The Fox News town hall is also notable given Trump’s recent criticism of the network. Last month, he accused Fox News of doing too much to boost DeSantis, who remains his main rival for the GOP’s 2024 nomination.
“They are desperately pushing DeSanctimonious who, regardless, is dropping like a rock,” Trump said in a post on his social media site Truth Social. “Fox News has become the DeSanctimonious Network, but it will never work because he doesn’t have the goods.”
While Trump has viewed DeSantis for months as a threat to his renomination, the rivalry between the two men has escalated in recent days.
Speaking to reporters in Iowa on Tuesday after a campaign kickoff rally, DeSantis vowed to return fire from Trump and accused his one-time political benefactor of moving “left” on key issues and failing to follow through on key campaign promises, like finishing construction of a wall along the U.S. southern border.
DeSantis’s remarks signaled the beginning of a long-anticipated slugfest with Trump, who sees himself as the GOP’s rightful nominee and the guarantor of DeSantis’s political success. Trump has already spent months attacking DeSantis with little pushback. But with the governor now in the race, the gloves appear to be coming off.
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Welcome to The Hill’s Campaign Report, we’re Max Greenwood, Caroline Vakil and Julia Manchester. Each week we track the key stories you need to know to stay ahead of the 2024 election and who will set the agenda in Washington.
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Key election stories and other recent campaign coverage:
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The House Republicans’ campaign arm is pitching the debate over a debt ceiling bill that passed the House on Wednesday as a “successful 2024 road test” as the party looks to retain its majority. House Republicans overcame a key hurdle by passing in a 314-117 vote a debt limit deal struck between House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and President Biden, despite some opposition from conservatives and progressives …
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Former President Trump pushed back against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s (R) argument that it would take two terms to finish the job in the White House, telling a crowd in Iowa on Thursday it would only take him six months. “I’ve been watching DeSanctus go out and say ‘I’ve got eight years. It’s going to be eight years,’” Trump said, mocking DeSantis. “Let me tell you something, …
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), a presidential candidate, snapped at a reporter who asked him about taking questions from those present at his campaign event in New Hampshire. “Governor, how come you’re not taking questions from voters?” an Associated Press reporter asked in the exchange. NBC News reporter Jonathan Allen tweeted that DeSantis declined to take questions at his first event in New Hampshire …
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Upcoming news themes and events we’re watching:
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- 135 days until Louisiana’s gubernatorial election
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159 days until Kentucky’s and Mississippi’s gubernatorial generals
- 518 days until the 2024 general election
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And then there were more…
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The GOP’s 2024 presidential field is poised to get a lot more crowded in the coming days.
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, the one-time Trump ally-turned-critic, is expected to announce a presidential bid on Tuesday in New Hampshire, becoming the eighth Republican to jump into the contest.
That announcement is expected to be followed just a day later by two more; former Vice President Mike Pence, who has spent months preparing for a likely campaign, is slated to make a decision on Wednesday, the same day that North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum is set to announce a 2024 bid.
The planned campaign launches come shortly after Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and DeSantis jumped into the Republican presidential primary.
At any rate, the field of contenders is growing quickly, and Christie, Pence and Burgum may not be the last to enter the race. New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, who has also floated a potential White House bid, said recently that he’ll make a decision in a matter of weeks.
At this point, anyone who enters the race is almost certain to face an uphill battle. Early polling shows Trump leading the rest of the field by a staggering margin, and the only other candidate who routinely wins double-digit support is DeSantis.
What’s more, polling regularly shows that Trump is the main beneficiary of a crowded GOP primary field. Speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday, Sununu articulated the dilemma most candidates are going to face in the coming months.
“The discipline is come November, late December, if you’re sitting in low single digits, get your butt out of the race, let’s narrow this thing down to two or three candidates and really figure out where the party is going to go,” he said.
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Branch out with a different read from The Hill:
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This is the fourth in a five-part series called “How Florida got so conservative.” Florida’s shift to the right has turned the Sunshine State under Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) into a model for other GOP-led states seeking to enact culturally conservative policies. It has also turned DeSantis into a national Republican leader preparing to challenge former President Trump in the GOP primary …
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is sharpening his attacks against former President Donald Trump just a week into his White House campaign, ushering in a new, more bitter phase of the 2024 presidential race. Speaking to reporters in Iowa after a campaign kickoff rally Tuesday night, DeSantis delivered his most direct attack on Trump yet, accusing his one-time political benefactor of moving “to the left” and opportunistically criticizing …
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Local and state headlines regarding campaigns and elections:
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Election news we’ve flagged from other outlets:
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Trump adds some campaign muscle to early state operations (Politico)
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Casey DeSantis on the trail (Semafor)
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Talk of racism proves thorny for GOP candidates of color (The New York Times)
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Key stories on The Hill right now:
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For the residents of St. Cloud, Fla., a small city on the outskirts of Orlando, Pride Month feels different this year — and it looks different, too. There will be no procession of rainbow Pride flags, or drag entertainers or street vendors this June. In fact, there won’t be an official Pride Month celebration in St. Cloud this year at … Read more
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The Democratic-led Senate handed a stinging rebuke to President Biden on Thursday, passing a measure that overturns his student debt relief plan to give 40 million borrowers up to $20,000 in loan forgiveness — though a presidential veto is likely on the way. The Senate passed the measure in a 52-46 vote just days after it cleared the GOP-majority … Read more
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Opinions related to campaigns and elections submitted to The Hill:
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You’re all caught up. See you next time!
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