Former President Donald Trump (R) has never been one to mince words. Known for his lack of filter and outsider aura, one of, if not the greatest attractions to the business mogul have been his ability to say what he wants to say without worrying if he sounds “presidential.”
Yes, there were times (especially during the 2016 primary) in which The Don decided to not verbalize every thought in his head.
For instance, he didn’t share his plans to defeat ISIS (because he didn’t want “enemies to know it”) or his philosophy regarding a replacement for ObamaCare, as he commonly stated that he didn’t want people “dying in the streets.”
But for the most part, the point remains: President Trump has never been afraid to say what he wants to say unless there’s a major strategic advantage to doing so.
Feelings have never been at the forefront. Some called it demagoguery, others called it populism, but everyone agreed it was Trumpism.
In 2011 as Trump was mulling over a presidential run, The Floridian publisher Javier Manjarres interviewed the future Commander-in-Chief at a rally in Boca Raton, Florida. The interview was set up by Trump's long-time political consultant and veteran Republican operator, Roger Stone.
“If I run, I’m running as a Republican. Depending on what the polls say – and I’m a believer in polls – if I lost as a Republican – right now I’m winning – but if I lost as a Republican, it’s so important to get Obama out. He’s going to go down as the worst president in the history of this country,” stated Trump.
He would go on to mention that he wouldn’t run for an egotistical push or to keep a specific candidate from winning (like when Ross Perot pulled a substantial amount of the popular vote in 1992), but rather to win.
“If I thought I could win, only win…but the problem with even considering [running] is that I would only take [votes] because I’m very conservative, very, very, conservative, I would only be taking from. This wouldn’t be like somebody running who’s got liberal tendencies, and you sort of split it or you take from the other party. I would only take from the Republicans, and that would absolutely cause a loss for the Republicans,” Trump said.
As we move into the 2024 GOP primary, Republicans around the country are filled with questions: Can Trump win a general election? Would a Ron DeSantis (R-FL) victory split the party? Would Trump run third party if he doesn’t win the nomination?
Based on polling, Trump doesn’t have to worry about those questions yet as he leads by at least 20 points nationwide in most research conducted.
But, if it ever gets to that point, would Trump stand down and leave should if he sees himself losing the Republican primary?
Even if he doesn’t run third party, will his hardcore, MAGA base refrain from writing in his name?
“I will only take from the Republicans, and that would absolutely cause a loss for the Republicans. That would be an Obama dream,” Trump said in 2011.
It appears to be just as true now as it was back then.
If Trump were to run for as an Independent (we don't believe he would), Republicans lose in 2024 because the MAGA base would not support DeSantis.
