Eyes on 2024: Trump boosts McCarthy, snubs McDaniel

Former President Donald Trump still holds serious sway with the Republican National Committee, making his decision not to help RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel in her re-election bid notable. 

McDaniel sports the endorsements of almost two-thirds of the membership, more than she needs to secure re-election. But while Trump could have likely quelled simmering discontent among some conservatives with a nod of support, he told Breitbart “I like them both” when asked whether he preferred McDaniel or California Republican National Committeewoman Harmeet Dhillon, who served as one of his campaign’s legal advisors. 

Trump did throw another ally a bone over the weekend — House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy, who is also facing some pressure from his right flank as a handful of Republicans say they won’t vote for him to become speaker. In a Breitbart interview, Trump reiterated his support for McCarthy, saying, “I like him,” and warning that the attempts to deny him the speakership could prove “dangerous.” 

In other 2024 news…

Gearing up for another run: NBC News reports that the White House held a series of closed-door meetings with top allies to counsel them on selling President Joe Biden’s record ahead of his expected re-election bid. The Washington Post reports that the re-elect wants to build out an even more robust digital campaign than it had in 2020, even as there still remain some doubts as to whether Biden will ultimately go through with a bid. 

Pence’s “identity crisis”: Politico reports on how former Vice President Mike Pence is handling the balancing act inside the GOP as a major face of the Trump administration who both broke with Trump on Jan. 6, 2021 but who hasn’t shied away from endorsing candidates who have questioned the legitimacy of that election. 

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Richmond rush: Republicans have selected Pastor Leon Benjamin as their nominee ahead of February’s special election in Virginia’s 4th District, with Democrats set to choose between four candidates on Tuesday. 

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

Live First or Die: New Hampshire politicians and politicos are livid at the prospect of the Democratic Party pushing the state aside on the presidential nominating calendar, NBC News’ Natasha Korecki reports. 

Will he, won’t he: Arkansas Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson told “Meet the Press” on Sunday that he’ll decide by the first quarter of 2023 whether he’ll run for president. 

Will he, won’t he part 2: While West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin told CBS he has “no intentions” of leaving the Democratic Party, but he cryptically added he’s keeping an eye on the politics surrounding the implementation of the signature infrastructure and spending bills he helped pass.

Say it ain’t so, Santos: The New York Times reports that New York GOP Rep.-elect George Santos’s supposed alma mater and a few supposed employers have no record of him attending or working there, and also raised questions about various other claims from his biography.