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Former President Donald Trump suggested it would be traitorous behavior if former Vice President Mike Pence or other Trump Cabinet officials tried to run against him in 2024.
‘I think it’d be very disloyal,’ the ex-president said Friday in a radio interview with Fox’s Brian Kilmeade.
Kilmeade brought up the names of Pence, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and former U.N. Amb. Nikki Haley, who have long hinted they have future political ambitions.
‘Well, many of them have said they would never run if I run. So, we’ll see whether or not that turns out to be true,’ Trump said.
He also pointed to public opinion polls showing that he had a ’40, 50 point’ advantage over the Republican hopefuls named.
The Real Clear Politics polling average puts Trump about 45 points ahead of Pence in early 2024 GOP primary public opinion polls.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who was not a member of Trump’s Cabinet but received his endorsement during his 2018 run, is consistenly second in the polls averaging around 19 percent support.
Pence, on the other hand, gets just 7 percent – while Haley and Pompeo both average under 3 points.
On Wednesday, during an appearance at Georgetown University Pence hinted he would not support a Trump 2024 bid.
‘Well, there might be somebody else I’d prefer more,’ Pence told students.
Former President Donald Trump suggested it would be traitorous behavior if former Vice President Mike Pence or other Trump Cabinet officials tried to run against him in 2024
Former Vice President Mike Pence hinted Wednesday that he wouldn’t lend his support to his ex-running mate, former President Donald Trump, should he run for president again
The former veep earned applause for his comments, which suggested he would throw his own name in the hat.
‘What I can tell you is, I have every confidence that the Republican Party is going to sort out leadership,’ Pence offered. ‘All my focus has been on the midterm elections, and it’ll stay that way for the next 20 days.’
‘But after that, we’ll be thinking about the future, ours and the nation’s,’ Pence continued. ‘I’ll keep you posted.’
Last week, Trump continued to tease a 2024 bid.
At a fundraiser at his Mar-a-Lago club, he told attendees he would make an announcement about his political future ‘very soon’ and people would be ‘very happy,’ Politico reported.
Over the summer he told New York Magazine, ‘In my own mind, I’ve already made that decision,’ the most definitive statement to date.
To Kilmeade he said ‘I’ll probably decide in the not-too-distant future’ whether to run.
The ex-president is headed to the red state of Texas this weekend to hold a large political rally, despite the area not hosting any competitive 2022 races.
Trump’s former secretary of State and CIA director Mike Pompeo said in September that he’s set up teams in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina – three early presidential primary states
Pence, at the same time, has been hosting donor retreats and building a political operation that he could use to launch his own 2024 bid.
After four years of governing side-by-side, Trump and Pence had a falling out when Pence refused to overturn the 2020 election when he presided over the joint session of Congress on January 6 to certify President Joe Biden’s win.
Trump has since said that if he runs again he’d choose a different running mate.
Pompeo, Trump’s former secretary of State and CIA director, lost weight after he left office – prompting 2024 rumors.
He’s been more vocal about those ambitions as of late.
‘We’ve got a team in Iowa, a team in New Hampshire and South Carolina. And that’s not random. We are doing the things one would do to get ready,’ he told 1,100 guests at the Navy Seal Foundation Midwest Evening event in Chicago in September, Politico reported.
Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina traditionally hold three of the earliest presidential primaries.
Haley also hinted at a presidential run at an event in July.
‘No deal is better than a bad deal. And if this president signs any sort of deal, I’ll make you a promise. The next president will shred it on her first day in office,’ she said, in reference to a renewed Iranian nuclear deal, according to The Hill.
She then added, ‘Just saying, sometimes it takes a woman.’
A number of other Republicans are also laying the groundwork to launch presidential bids.
Earlier this month, Politico reported on the efforts of Sens. Tom Cotton and Tim Scott.
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez on Monday said he was also considering a bid.
Additionally, Arkansas’ Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who’s been critical of Trump, has indicated he’s interested in running for the White House.
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