Third-generation Iowa farmer Marc Knupp describes himself as a longtime supporter of Donald Trump.
But Knupp, who said he was 70, admitted he doubted the former president could win in 2024 – because he was ‘***’dated by the media and his rivals for the nomination of the GOP.
“I’ve been a long-time supporter of Donald Trump, but sadly he won’t be shaken equally in the media or in the public,” he told DailyMail.com between the contestants’ Q&A at the show. Governor Kim Reynolds. cats.
“Trump got pissed off by everyone,” he said, noting “Trump can’t get elected.”
Knupp, like many Iowans, was hanging out at the State Fair on Friday, listening to the many Republican candidates pitch their 2024 campaign pitches.
Donald Trump spent Friday on his golf course at his club Bedminister, NJ
He hasn’t chosen one to support yet, but is shopping around. “There are a lot of good candidates in the running,” he noted.
He said his only goal for 2024 was to “make sure Joe Biden is out of power.”
Knupp joins other Iowa Republicans who believe Trump has an eligibility issue that could undo his bid to return to the White House.
Kari Lake, the failed Arizona gubernatorial candidate turned Trump surrogate, is spending Friday at the fair rallying voters on behalf of the former president.
She told DailyMail.com that the media had been unfair to Trump’for eight years. They dragged his family through the mud. They dragged his name through the mud. They ran a smear campaign for eight years.
She said he would be at the fair on Saturday talking to people.
“He’s just going to spend the day with people. He is a man of the people. Everything he does, he does for the American people. And so he’s not going to do a bunch of the typical stuff that politicians do. He’s going to be here with the people. He’s going to be here with people and I really believe the people of Iowa are going to appreciate him,’ she said.
Trump has many supporters in the state, but some Republicans are expressing doubts about his ability to beat Joe Biden ahead of the former president’s appearance at the state fair on Saturday.
Trump leads in Iowa polls — including 26 points in the latest DailyMail.com survey — but he’s barely set foot in the state.
And while his rivals for the Republican nomination are campaigning the old-fashioned way — touring the 99 counties, visiting the butter cow at the state fair and flipping pork chops on the grill — Trump will arrive and depart on Saturday, not passing only a few hours in the field.
The lack of appearances and the barn stormed by his competitors could sow doubt in the minds of voters about the former president.
Another Iowa voter at Reynolds’ event, a woman who declined to be named, described herself as a “strong Republican” who was done with Trump.
She said there was “too much controversy” surrounding the former president and said she “just wants to beat Biden.”
Former Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen flip pork burgers and meet with the Iowa Pork Producers Association
Fairgoers stop with their hands on their hearts to listen to the national anthem at the Iowa State Fair on Friday
She also worried that Trump might have distractions that could prevent him from governing. The former president already had a lot. On Friday, Special Counsel Jack Smith requested that the Trump trial efforts to annul the 2020 election are expected to begin January 2, 2024 and take “no longer than four to six weeks.” This period would cover the Iowa caucuses – January 15 – and possibly even the New Hampshire primary, which is tentatively set for February 6.
And, if the 2024 election came down to a contest between Trump and Biden, “I don’t even know if I would vote,” she admitted.
Reynolds hosts talks at the fair with all the Republican presidential candidates except Trump, who declined her invitation, but spoke well of rival Ron DeSantis.
Republican Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa told Fox News that while Trump is leading in the polls, we also have a number of people who will say, “We need a new face over there.”
Many Republicans are vying to be the new face. Mike Pence spends two days walking around the fairgrounds. He talked with Reynolds, ate pork and saw the famous butter cow.
Ron DeSantis, his wife Casey and their three children will tackle the fairgrounds on Saturday. Prior to that, the DeSantis clan is on a two-day bus tour of the state as part of the Governor of Florida’s quest to visit all 99 counties.
Trump, on the other hand, sent former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake to the fair on Friday to act as a surrogate on his behalf.
Kari Lake was in Iowa on Friday to act as Donald Trump’s surrogate, she stopped to milk a cow
Longtime Republican Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa told DailyMail.com, “If you’re at the State Fair, engage with the Iowans.” Make sense ? That’s how you win a caucus.
But he may need to do handshakes and ropes himself. And his Saturday event remains a bit of a mystery – Will he eat frying on a stick? Will he visit the butter cow?
Longtime Republican Senator Chuck Grassley told DailyMail.com: “If you’re at the State Fair, engage with the Iowans. Make sense? That’s how you win a caucus.
Grassley, who escorted the presidential candidates around the state fair, said he hadn’t spoken to the former president, nor did he know what Trump was planning for Saturday.
‘I don’t know. But I know what he did eight years ago when he was here. He came with his helicopter, gave to children who ride in the helicopter. He should do the same thing again,” he said.
