Tim Scott has officially entered the 2024 presidential race, and his Senate colleagues, long tired of Donald Trump, are slowly lining up to signal their support for his new challenge.
“Tim Scott is a good man,” Senator Bill Cassidy told DailyMail.com in an interview. “And the contrast between his character and the character of others is quite remarkable. I think very strongly of him.
The Louisiana Republican declined to say when he would support the race, though he said Trump and Joe Biden would be “disqualified” for “lying” about his favorite issue of this Congress – Social Security reform.
“We know that a week is an eternity in politics. We have many weeks, so we have many eternities before the first primary.
Tim Scott has officially entered the 2024 presidential race, and his Senate colleagues, long tired of Donald Trump, are slowly lining up to signal their support for his challenge.
Scott’s GOP primary polling numbers have hovered around 2%, but his team insists they will rise as he officially joins the race
John Thune, the No. 2 Senate Republican, plans to endorse Scott — and was planning to deliver a speech at his North Charleston announcement event on Monday.
South Dakota Republican Mike Rounds has already announced that he will support Scott before entering the race.
“I think he’s the closest Ronald Reagan you’re ever going to see,” Rounds told the Washington Examiner.
Cassidy went into detail Sunday about why he doesn’t think Trump can win a general election on CNN.
The Louisiana senator was asked about Governor Ron DeSantis, saying only he, Trump and President Biden were viable candidates.
“Tim Scott is a good man,” Senator Bill Cassidy told DailyMail.com in an interview. “And the contrast between his character and the character of others is quite remarkable. I think very strongly of him
John Thune, the GOP Senate whip, plans to endorse Scott
“Two things: I don’t think Trump can win a general election, but it’s a good way for him to get past people like Senator Tim Scott, who’s a pretty great candidate.” You have to take this as a competitor trying to distract others.
“On the other hand, in the last election cycle, we saw in every swing state – almost every one – Georgia, Pennsylvania, Nevada and Arizona, that the Senate candidates that Trump endorsed all lost. “
“If you had taken the votes that went to other Republicans and put them together, those Republicans would have won,” he explained. “So I think the president’s kind of high-profile endorsement for these candidates has actually hurt these candidates, at least in the general election.”
“So if the past is prologue, that means President Trump is going to struggle in swing states, which means he can’t win a general election,” he concluded.
Scott’s GOP primary polling numbers have hovered around 2%, but his team insists they will rise as he officially joins the race. The senator has $22 million in cash – coffers that could launch him into serious competition with the race’s two top favorites – Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
Scott, one of the nation’s most prominent black Republicans, reflects on his “cotton to Congress” life story — his grandfather dropped out of third grade to pick cotton, his mother raised him as a single mother and Scott himself was the first black man to serve in both the House and the Senate.
For Scott, Trump’s policies weren’t the problem. His campaign is sure to be heavy on rosy messaging and light on political differences with the former president.
“I am living proof that America is a land of opportunity, not a land of oppression,” Scott said in his opening salvo on Monday.
“Our nation, our values and our people are strong, but our president is weak.”
He has made faith and education the twin pillars of his campaign, frequently quoting scripture during his announcement speech and the Faith in America “listening tour” that preceded the launch.
Scott is relying on his temperate demeanor, his record of government (a favorite being the so-called opportunity zones enshrined in the 2017 tax cuts) — and his close connections in the Senate — to propel him to the forefront.
Scott has so far chosen not to call out Trump directly – and while speaking out about his own racial identity, he often criticizes Democrats for promoting “victimism” over “personal responsibility”.
But at a town hall in New Hampshire earlier this month, Scott might have alluded to Trump and his continued focus on 2020 when he said, “The seeds of greatness, not the seeds of grievance, are our coming.”
Trump, in turn, also avoided attacking Scott.
“Good luck to Senator Tim Scott getting in the race for the Republican Presidential Primary. He’s taking care of a lot of people and Tim is a big step up from Ron DeSanctimonious, who is totally ineligible. I made areas of opportunities with Tim, a big business that has been very successful. Good luck Tim!’
