Former President Donald Trump overwhelmingly won the New Hampshire primary against the remaining Republican competitor Nikki Haley, with many now saying the primary process is effectively over. Representative Mike Waltz (R-FL) discussed the victory and where Trump goes from here in a recent appearance on Fox Business's Mornings with Maria, saying the sheer enthusiasm of the former President's base will carry him the day.
The response comes from various sources who suggest Trump will have difficulty swaying independents and moderates to vote for him in November. The Wall Street Journal reported results from a recent poll showing 19% of Republicans were dissatisfied with Trump being the nominee and would not vote for him in the general election, while a far more worrying 66% of independents gave similar answers.
Nevertheless, Rep. Waltz said that poll results such as these forget "what really wins elections, which is the turnout and the enthusiasm. And I can tell you, I have not seen or experienced negative 30 temperatures like I did in Iowa since I was in Arctic warfare school in Alaska, and people were turning out in droves and they were only turning out for Donald Trump."
After all, Rep. Waltz continued, "People are not enthusiastic about Joe Biden" because of the visible difference in how life was under Trump versus how it has been under Biden.
"In the past, we were talking theoretically about what the progressives would do if they were in charge. Now we have had the last three years of it, and the contrast with how people's lives were under Trump and how they are now could not be more clear. I think that is going to bode very well for the next President, Donald J. Trump, in November," Waltz concluded.
At the same time, the latest RealClearPolitics polling averages place Trump only 2.9 points ahead of Biden. While this is still a victory, it does lend credence to the idea that Trump will need to persuade independents and moderates to vote for him and win before November if it means a wider margin of victory.
