Senate Republicans face growing pressure to endorse Trump

Senate Republicans are staring at a high-stakes situation over whether to support former President Trump.

With New Hampshire's primary election quickly approaching, those who have previously refrained from participating are making their support meaningful before the former president potentially opts to defect to the Republican Party for good. The window for reaping the benefits of President Trump is narrowing.

“As the primaries unfold, the political upside of supporting the president diminishes,” said Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), an early Trump supporter. “Following Iowa, he's effectively the presumptive candidate in my opinion. I think he was better before Iowa, and I'm sure he was better before New Hampshire, but if he gets to the convention floor… If you wait and support that guy, what does that actually say about your beliefs?”

“I think it's better to do that sooner rather than later,” Vance added.

The former president won in Iowa on Monday with 50 percent of the vote, easily defeating Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R).

This comes as many Senate Republicans see New Hampshire, where the race is close but where Trump still leads in polls, as their last chance to throw meaningful support into Trump's bid. It means that.

They also note that Mr. Trump has a history of directing his anger and those of his supporters at people he deems disloyal.

Since early December, 12 Senate Republicans have endorsed Trump's bid for a third White House, including several days before the Iowa caucuses. A total of 26 Senate Republicans are participating, and the former president, who will be in New Hampshire, will make up more than half of the session.

Perhaps most notably, Sen. Tim Scott (R.C.) announced his support for Trump during a Friday rally in New Hampshire.

The former presidential candidate has avoided the spotlight since ending her campaign in mid-November, but Trump and Haley have been encouraging her to campaign, especially ahead of the nation's first primary. He urged them to support him.

One person familiar with the situation said Ms. Haley is fighting for her political career ahead of Tuesday, but Mr. Trump wants her support to end the primary battle.

Trump has a roughly 10-point lead over Haley in New Hampshire, according to Hill/DDHQ polling averages.

Sources said the pressure from the Trump campaign was not directly coercive, but the former president did speak privately about the lack of support from other senators, including Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). He was reportedly dissatisfied.

The Texas conservative endorsement was announced Tuesday in the wake of the Iowa results, with Cruz telling The Hill that DeSantis' 30-point loss turned the tide.

“I said from the beginning that I wanted to let the voters decide. The results in Iowa were convincing. It was a resounding performance,” Cruz said. “I know the Iowa caucuses very well. I have a lot of respect for the men and women of Iowa and they take their jobs very seriously.”

“Given that result, I think the race is effectively over,” he added.

Among those trying to boost Trump's support in the chamber is Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.), chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee and the first member of Republican leadership to support Trump's campaign. ) is there.

Mr. Daines has been quietly lobbying colleagues for the past month to help Mr. Trump's team win support in the Senate, according to people familiar with the effort.

“Every senator has to draw his or her own conclusions, but I've always been respectful of my colleagues wherever they land. But it's important to note that I encourage them to support the president. “Because he's going to be the candidate, and the sooner we unify, the better off we'll be heading into November 2024,” Daines told The Hill. “Politics is about addition, not subtraction.”

With Iowa withdrawn, Sens. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) are freed from their pre-caucus neutrality pledges and are now in the race. I will do it. Ernst is considered the prominent member of the Republican leadership most likely to support the former president, but told The Hill he is holding back on his feelings for now.

“I'm going to do whatever it takes to get [President Biden] I left the White House. Let's do that,'' Ernst said.

Grassley, 90, was hospitalized with an infection earlier in the week but was released from the hospital Thursday.

Part of the pre-Iowa calculation for the Trump campaign was to not only win as much Senate support as possible, but win Senate support in numbers that would give the impression that the primaries were over before they even started. .

“This is primarily about who can add a sense of necessity so that they can get this thing under control and stop spending. … What voters really care about is Who is it? Who does the media care about? Who is the big deal? The Republican aides of the senators who support Trump include Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas). ) and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) said they were looking into Cruz's name.

Mr. Rubio, who was President Trump's rival in 2016, announced his support for Mr. Trump on the eve of the caucuses, thumbing his nose at fellow Florida resident Mr. DeSantis in the process.

Despite Trump's dominance, there are several people at the top of the Republican conference who are increasingly likely to support him until he officially becomes the Republican nominee. .

In addition to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), whose relationship with President Trump is well known, there is also Senate Minority Leader John Thune (R-Ky.), a powerful ally of McConnell. suggested to reporters last week that he was not. He supported Mr. Scott's campaign last year, so he was in a hurry to announce his support for the president again.

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) also balked when asked about his support for the former president, echoing Ernst and saying he would do whatever he could to defeat Biden. Both Thune and Cornyn have been critical of Trump's chances of survival in the general election in the past.

Republican leaders are not expected to jump on the deal, but some participants at the conference are hoping for unity among the Trump camp, including the leadership.

“They need to do that,” said Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), the first senator to endorse the Trump campaign. “He will be our candidate.”