Colombia: Donald Trump, a former president of the United States, visited two early voting states on Saturday for the first time since declaring his intention to run for president again in 2024. Trump dismissed criticism that his campaign has gotten off to a slow start.
Before making an appearance with his leadership team in Columbia, South Carolina, Trump, a Republican, told a small crowd at the annual meeting of the New Hampshire Republican Party in Salem that "I'm more angry now, and I'm more committed now, than I ever was."
As two of the first four states to hold presidential nominating contests, New Hampshire and South Carolina have a disproportionate amount of influence as candidates vie for the nomination.
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The events on Saturday were relatively subdued in comparison to the boisterous rallies that Trump frequently holds in front of thousands of supporters. Governor Henry McMaster and U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina flanked Trump as he addressed 200 attendees in Columbia.
A growing number of elected officials have expressed concerns about Trump's ability to defeat Democratic President Joe Biden, if he decides to run again, as is widely anticipated. Trump was once the undisputed leader of the Republican Party.
Republican candidates, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who is widely regarded as Trump's biggest threat, are debating whether to run for president.
Numerous prominent Republicans in both of the states that Trump visited on Saturday, including Chris Sununu, the governor of New Hampshire, and Nikki Haley, the former governor of South Carolina, are considering running for president. In New Hampshire, where Trump's victory in 2016 solidified his position as a leading contender, many high-ranking Republicans claim they are looking for an alternative.
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The state party chairman, a number of the state's Republican U.S. representatives, and South Carolina U.S. Senator Tim Scott, who has himself been mentioned as a potential Republican presidential candidate, were all noticeably absent from the event. Schedule conflicts have been mentioned by Scott and others.
According to a person with knowledge of the preparations, a number of Republican state lawmakers decided not to go after failing to secure guarantees from Trump's team that their attendance would not be seen as an endorsement.
Many Republicans are delaying their endorsement of Trump, according to political strategist Rob Godfrey of Columbia, because of the wide range of potential contenders for the party's nomination.
Because Republicans have such a strong field this year, "I think there are a fair number of people keeping their powder dry," he said. Trump echoed some of the themes that drove his first campaign at both of his stops on Saturday, particularly his criticism of China and illegal immigration.
He nevertheless emphasised social issues like transgender rights and racial studies in school curricula, perhaps in retaliation to DeSantis, whose unrelenting emphasis on culture wars has contributed to the rise of his national profile.
Undoubtedly, Trump continues to enjoy a sizable base of support, especially from the working class. While he trails DeSantis in some head-to-head polls, he triumphs by sizable margins when poll participants are given a wider range of choices.
Trump did not spend a lot of time repeating his well-known complaints about the 2020 election, though he did make references to his fabrication that the election had been rigged against him.
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Trump has kept a low profile ever since he started his campaign in November. Early in January, he called a number of conservative Republicans serving in the House to convince them to support an ally, Kevin McCarthy, for Speaker. Most ignored his pleas, but McCarthy eventually won the election after a bloody struggle.
