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WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump is seeking to tighten his grip on the Republican Party, from policy decisions to threats of purges, as he approaches his 2024 presidential nomination.
Although he has not yet finalized his nomination, Trump is working to repeal the bipartisan border security bill and has signaled his intention to push for Republican action in the coming months.
In an effort to align himself with the Republican Party, the former president also permanently banned “anyone” who contributes to the “Make America Great Again” movement of his remaining chief opponent, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley. He threatened to lock me out.
Trump has primarily been running the party since his successful 2016 campaign, but his control has waxed and waned, particularly since his 2020 defeat and failed insurrection on January 6, 2021.
For now, he still faces major challenges, with polls showing large groups of Republicans and moderate voters worried about his four criminal charges and unprecedented hurdles to his 2024 campaign. Despite the fact that it has been shown that there are
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On the day before his victory in the New Hampshire primary on January 23, which followed his victory in Iowa, President Trump endorsed, saying, “I can say with certainty that the Republican Party will never go back to the days when establishment candidates were weak.” I told the people. caucus meeting.
Jeffrey Engel, director of the Center for Presidential History at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, said Trump is “certainly proving himself to be a leader of the party,” a traditional role for potential candidates. He said there is.
But Trump is unique in that he is a former president with a history of scrutiny that includes lawsuits and criminal charges. By reasserting control of his party, he will be free to attack President Joe Biden and the Democratic Party as if they were outsiders.
“It’s very easy to become a bomb thrower outside the Oval Office,” Engel said.
President Trump wants to repeal border bill
In terms of swaying Republican policy, President Trump has gone out of his way in recent weeks to kill bipartisan legislation addressing border security.
President Trump has repeatedly spoken with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana), arguing that the bill is unnecessary and that Biden should use the authority he already has to close the border.
Johnson told reporters on Tuesday that it was “ridiculous” to suggest that Republicans were trying to repeal the bill to help President Trump’s campaign.
“Our duty is to do the right thing by the American people and protect them,” Johnson said, adding that Trump “understands that we have a responsibility here.”
Mr. Johnson and Mr. Trump are in frequent contact, he said, giving the former president many opportunities to advance his policies. President Trump praised Johnson during his campaign, telling his supporters in Las Vegas over the weekend: It is difficult when the majority is very small. It’s very tough. ”
During the campaign, Trump has signaled support for a number of Republican agenda items, including investigating the president’s son Hunter Biden and pushing for impeachment against President Biden. Democrats and some Republicans believe the proposed impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas is part of President Trump’s effort to make the border issue a major campaign issue.
But while Mr. Johnson is pushing for immigration reform, Mr. Trump is calling on Republican leaders to reject the Senate’s compromise.
“If you don’t want to pass a great border bill, a great immigration bill, I said, don’t pass a bill,” Trump told reporters after meeting with Teamsters leaders this week. “If it’s not good, if it doesn’t solve the border problem, then don’t do this bill.”
President Trump is expected to continue speaking out about upcoming negotiations in Washington on a spending bill and the prospect of a government shutdown in March.
In an interview aired on the Fox News Business Network on Friday, President Trump said he plans to speak out against Federal Reserve Chairman Jay Powell. The reason: “I think he’s probably going to do something to help the Democratic Party. If he lowers his interest, I think” Fee. ”
Mr. Powell’s work is bipartisan.
Donald Trump is not yet the Republican nominee
Still, as Trump’s influence echoes through the halls of Congress, not all Republicans agree with the former president, at least not yet, nor is his presidential nomination confirmed.
Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley continues to challenge the former president for Republican support after sweeping victories in Iowa and New Hampshire. Haley says the Republican Party and the country need to move on from President Trump’s “chaotic” leadership style.
“I have a different style and approach than Joe Biden or Donald Trump,” Haley said on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. “There’s no drama. There’s no revenge. There’s no complaining. Just results.”
Haley hopes to derail the Trump train in her home state of South Carolina, which will hold its primary on February 24th. But polls show Trump with a wide lead over Haley in South Carolina and elsewhere.
President Trump threatens to ban Haley’s supporters
Trump and his allies have responded to Haley’s continued campaign with scathing attacks on her and her donors.
On January 24, the day after the New Hampshire primary, President Trump posted on Truth Social that donors to Haley’s campaign would be “permanently banned from the MAGA campaign.” “We don’t want them and we won’t accept them,” Trump said.
After Trump made that threat, Haley said, “He’s supposed to be serving everyone in America, and now he’s got a club and he’s actually decided to ban people from coming in.” told. your club. ”
She added: “I mean, he’s totally upset.”
The Wall Street Journal’s op-ed page, long a bastion of conservatism, said Trump’s idea of uniting the party seemed to be “purging Republicans who remain skeptical of Trump.” .
“As he said when launching his campaign, retribution is top of his mind,” the paper’s editorial page said. “But this politics of subtraction will make it difficult for President Biden to win.”
President Trump’s influence in 2024
Potential presidential candidates typically become the de facto leaders of their political parties, with varying degrees of success. But like many things in the Trump era, this one is different.
First, Trump is a former president. No former president has returned to office since Grover Cleveland in 1892.
Trump, also a former president, has refused to admit he lost the 2020 election to Biden, and many Republican voters agree with him.
This particular former president is being sued for more than $88 million in damages from author E. Jean Carroll, who accused him of rape in an incident from the 1990s. Trump also faces four potential criminal charges, including two charges related to his efforts to overturn his 2020 loss to Biden.
But recent polls show that some Republicans, and many moderates, could turn against Trump if he is convicted in any of these cases. ing.
A Washington Post Monmouth University poll released Thursday shows Trump leading Haley in South Carolina by a margin of 58% to 32%, but also includes some red flags for the front-runner. .
Asked what Republicans should do if Trump is convicted in either case, 60% of respondents said Trump should remain the nominee, while 36% said He said Trump should be replaced with another candidate.
“An unusual amount of shaking”
Lara Brown, author of “Jockeying for the American Presidency: The Political Opportunism of Aspirants,” said Trump’s success in navigating these issues has given him “undue influence within the party.” He said he was able to get it.
This led to a number of anomalies, Brown said.
One is that if Trump had won in 2020, he would now be weaker against Republicans. He will be a lame duck for a second term while other Republicans are vying for the nomination.
He added that Trump’s actions suggest he wants the Republican Party to help him, rather than the party as a whole.
“Donald Trump is more concerned about his future and staying out of prison,” she said.
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