Trump's Lackluster Announcement Make Many Wonder His Actual Intentions

The verdict is in, President Trump’s campaign announcement was lackluster at best and his GOP support is weakening. That’s the view of many that saw Donald Trump announce his third presidential run Tuesday night from his Mar-a-Lago estate. The former president officially launched his presidential campaign for the year 2024. He filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission declaring that he is running for president and creating a new campaign committee. Many Republicans are not excited about Trump’s announcement, hoping that another candidate will emerge or that the field will be large enough to make a choice.

The 2024 announcement came amid criticism that Mr. Trump has lacked the support of the Republican party. Although former GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney has already ruled out a bid for the presidency, many other Republicans have been hesitant to support the former president. Furthermore, the list of potential candidates for the job is long and growing. The assessment of many on Trump’s announcement looked like one running from jail rather than President. The fire wasn’t there.

The event came after a disappointing midterm election cycle for Republicans. The GOP failed to regain control of the Senate and only seems poised to have the slightest majority in the House. Many Republicans are calling on their party to move on from Mr. Trump, as his popularity continues to fall.

Megadonors have already begun dumping Trump. CNBC reports “Some of the nation’s wealthiest GOP donors have been eyeing Florida’s and Virginia’s Republican governors, Ron DeSantis and Glenn Youngkin, as more electable candidates for the White House.” Many see DeSantis as “Trump Light,” while Youngkin seems to be a hybrid of traditional Republicans with a stronger conservative bent. Many see Youngkin as a very viable bridge to normalcy for the GOP. One person we are hearing less of is former Vice President Mike Pence. Pence was walking a tightrope of embracing Trump’s successes, while arguing there had to be a better approach to governing than Trump’s. Pence needed Trump to fade, but not necessarily plummet overnight. There’s a chance Pence will plummet with Trump.

Many in the GOP believe Trump really doesn’t want to run. He might want to be President, but doesn’t want to run. You saw that in what is being described as a “lackluster speech” announcing his candidacy. Rupert Murdoch had been a long time Trump advocate, but the News Corp empire has been slowly distancing itself from Trump. The company’s New York Post headline says plenty, “‘Low energy,’ ‘bruised’ Trump 2024 announcement gets panned on Twitter.”

In that speech Trump declared himself a victim of persecution from the US government. The legal troubles that surround him are numerous. Many see his candidacy as a way of protecting himself from those troubles rather than pursuing the White House.

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Leading Republican says the disastrous midterm election results changed everything in an interview on the Price of Business show: