GOP senators divided on Trump verdict, considering other candidates.

Republican Senators Divided on Trump’s 2024 Presidential Nomination

Republican senators are split on whether former President Donald Trump should be the party’s nominee for the 2024 presidential election after a New York jury found him liable for battery and defamation in a civil trial. The case stems from allegations that Trump raped writer E. Jean Carroll in a Manhattan department store nearly 30 years ago. The jury ordered Trump to pay $5 million in damages to Carroll for battery and defamation.

Republican Senators Speak Out

• Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) said he has a difficult time supporting Trump after the verdict and is looking at other candidates.
• Sen. John Thune (R-SD), the No. 2 Republican in the Senate, admitted the verdict may not make a dent with Trump’s base but emphasized the growing number of legal problems could pose a risk to his 2024 bid to regain the White House.
• Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) brought up the question of electability, saying he doesn’t think Trump can get elected and that you can’t win a general election with just your base.
• Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who has endorsed Trump’s run, thinks the New York legal system is off the rails when it comes to Donald Trump.
• Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) dismissed the verdict, saying it was only a civil action, and thinks Trump will be the nominee in 2024.
• Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT), one of the most prominent critics of the 45th president within the GOP, finds this most recent verdict more troubling and hopes the jury of the American people concludes that Trump should not be the next nominee for the Republican Party or the president.

Despite the divisions within the conference, many Senate Republicans have said publicly and privately that Trump is consolidating his support within the GOP and looks likely to become the nominee in 2024 despite looming legal problems. The former president has doubled his lead in recent polling over rival Ron DeSantis, Florida’s GOP governor, since Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg indicted him in late March.

While some Republicans like Sen. Mitt Romney voiced their skepticism with the earlier Trump indictment, the Utah senator finds this most recent verdict more troubling. Sen. John Thune acknowledged the divisions within the conference, with some members deciding to continue to stand by Trump through all matters of adversity, but doubted it would have an impact on the Senate’s work.

Regardless of the outcome, the 2024 presidential election is sure to be an interesting affair.