In the push towards the Republican Party actually nominating Donald Trump for the 2024 race for president — or, well, not, Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.) has stated he is not backing the ex-commander-in-chief in the primary.
There is still an opening for someone other than Trump to nab the Republican nomination, even if signs point towards Donald eking out a win anyway. It doesn’t necessarily seem at this point that Florida GOP Governor Ron DeSantis has suddenly ruled out the possibility of himself making a run after the many moves that direction he’s undertaken recently, and in polls, Trump leads DeSantis by a lot but tops out with an average of just over half the support in surveys, nationally speaking. The FiveThirtyEight average, which is weighted, had Trump with 52 percent of the support as of Thursday, showing DeSantis at just under one-fourth. Nobody else was even close to double-digits.
There also is, of course, the possibility Trump is otherwise occupied because of a jail sentence, should charges materialize in the criminal probe in Georgia into attempts by him and his allies to essentially undo Biden’s win there in 2020 or in another venue. For Young, he cited issues including Trump refusing to just support Ukraine in its defense against an invasion from Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s forces. As reported by journalist Igor Bobic, Young also pointed to the electoral record held by the former president. In his own races and contests where candidates with close ties to him have competed, losses have continued.
“You want a nominee to win the general election,” Young said. “As President Trump says, I prefer winners. He consistently loses. In fact, he has a habit of losing not just his own elections, but losing elections for others… I can’t think of someone [worse] equipped to bring people together… and advance our collective values than the former president. I don’t think conservatives would be well served by electing someone whose core competency seems to be owning someone on Twitter.” Well, it’s Truth Social now, but point taken!
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) also spoke in opposition to Trump’s performance during a CNN interview that aired on Wednesday night, and Romney, like Young, also pointed to Trump’s hesitation towards Ukraine. It’s a hesitation — and sometimes antagonism — shared by plenty of others in Trump’s political circles, whether Madison Cawthorn calling that country’s president a “thug” or Tucker Carlson and Matt Gaetz falsely making connections between U.S. action and, well, death in Ukraine.
Young on Trump: "I can't think of someone worst equipped to bring people together…and advance our collective values than the former president. I don't think conservatives would be well served by electing someone whose core competency seems to be owning someone on Twitter."
— Igor Bobic (@igorbobic) May 11, 2023
Would he run for president?
“No,” Young said
— Igor Bobic (@igorbobic) May 11, 2023
