{"id":1939433,"date":"2023-05-27T08:11:01","date_gmt":"2023-05-27T12:11:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/analysis-why-a-growing-gop-field-is-beneficial-to-trump\/"},"modified":"2023-05-27T08:11:01","modified_gmt":"2023-05-27T12:11:01","slug":"analysis-why-a-growing-gop-field-is-beneficial-to-trump","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/analysis-why-a-growing-gop-field-is-beneficial-to-trump\/","title":{"rendered":"ANALYSIS: Why a Growing GOP Field Is Beneficial to Trump"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fanalysis-why-a-growing-gop-field-is-beneficial-to-trump%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1939433&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div class=\"post_content\">\n<div class=\"aplayer_app\" data-source=\"https:\/\/vs1.youmaker.com\/assets\/2023\/0527\/bbebd3ac-aac6-4d74-8951-af70918fe640\/audio.mp3?length=8866701&#038;duration=739\"><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<p><em>News Analysis<\/em><\/p>\n<p>It took a little while, but the GOP 2024 presidential field has suddenly and dramatically expanded.<\/p>\n<p>In a matter of days, Sen. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/tim-scott-formally-launches-2024-presidential-bid_5282252.html\">Tim Scott<\/a> (R-S.C.) and Florida Gov.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/desantis-declares-2024-run-for-president_5285811.html\">Ron DeSantis<\/a> officially joined the 2024 Republican presidential field, ending months of hints and speculation.<\/p>\n<p>Virginia Gov,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2023\/05\/25\/glenn-youngkin-talking-to-prospective-donors-about-possible-2024-run-sources\/\">Glenn Youngkin<\/a>, New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, and others could soon launch campaigns as well.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_5217669\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2023\/04\/24\/id5217669-04222023-DSC08061-Tim-Scott-1200x800.jpg\"><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a> Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) meets with guests at the Iowa Faith &#038; Freedom Coalition in Clive, Iowa, on April 22, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu\/The Epoch Times)<\/figure>\n<p>On May 26, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/politics\/2024-election\/north-dakota-gov-doug-burgum-considers-presidential-bid-rcna85307\">NBC<\/a> and other sources reported that North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum is readying a bid for 2024, citing comments from an unnamed aide. A source familiar with the matter confirmed that reporting to The Epoch Times.<\/p>\n<p>Former President Donald Trump remains the clear front-runner, ahead of DeSantis in the polls. Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, businessman Perry Johnson, and others have also entered the race.<\/p>\n<p>Unsurprisingly, Trump and DeSantis backers see the situation differently. Yet, in conversations with activists and with major scholars of history and politics, it became apparent that the growing field likely works to the former president\u2019s advantage: A race that could have been defined as \u201cTrump vs. DeSantis\u201d is growing more chaotic by the day, preventing Trump\u2019s opposition from forming a single bulwark against him.<\/p>\n<h2>Trump, DeSantis, and the Rest<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re going to have an absolute clown show of a primary,\u201d said Alex Bruesewitz, a Trump-aligned consultant, in a May 25 interview with The Epoch Times.<\/p>\n<p>He argued that the announcements from Scott and DeSantis have set the stage for more pols to rush in where many have so far feared to tread.<\/p>\n<p>In his judgment, that\u2019s down to DeSantis\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/morning-consult-poll-indicates-desantis-jumped-the-2024-shark_5253707.html\">falling poll numbers<\/a> in the past several months.<\/p>\n<p>Bruesewitz claimed DeSantis wouldn\u2019t be up against so many possible rivals \u201chad he kept the momentum that he had in mid-January.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s clear that DeSantis is a huge threat to Trump,\u201d said Elon Gerberg, a DeSantis advocate, in a May 26 interview with The Epoch Times.<\/p>\n<p>Gerberg is the founder of the parental rights group Florida Fathers for Freedom.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI started a whole organization trying to get dads to the forefront,\u201d he said, citing the mask mandates in schools as a trigger for his activism. DeSantis, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/on-covid-trump-and-desantis-converged-and-diverged_5153515.html\">relatively early leader<\/a> against pandemic-era restrictions on liberty, helped create the context for the conservative activism now flourishing in the Sunshine State.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4900348\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2022\/12\/02\/Rally-Protect-the-Children.jpeg\"><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a> Florida Fathers for Freedom and Gays Against Groomers jointly held a Protect the Children rally in Fort Lauderdale in December 2022. (Courtesy of Florida Fathers for Freedom)<\/figure>\n<p>He argued that the contest will have to come down to Trump versus DeSantis.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI personally don\u2019t think any of these other candidates have a shot,\u201d Gerberg said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m not even sure if he [DeSantis] can beat him [Trump],\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>The Epoch Times contacted one of those minor candidates, Johnson, for a different perspective.<\/p>\n<p>A quality assurance guru who previously sought Michigan\u2019s Republican nomination for governor, Johnson\u2019s biggest claim to credibility so far is his third-place showing in a CPAC straw poll.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVoters are open to political outsiders like Perry Johnson,\u201d said Elizabeth Stoddart, Johnson\u2019s communications manager, in a May 26 email to The Epoch Times.<\/p>\n<p>While Stoddart didn\u2019t explicitly call out Trump, she took a few potshots at DeSantis\u2013the target of <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/nnworcester\/status\/1649925904754262016?s=20\">Johnson\u2019s criticism<\/a> when he didn\u2019t appear at the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition meeting in late April.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_5214849\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2023\/04\/23\/id5214849-04222023-DSC07512-Perry-Johnson-1200x800.jpg\"><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a> Republican presidential candidate Perry Johnson speaks at the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition in Clive, Iowa, on April 22, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu\/The Epoch Times)<\/figure>\n<p>That\u2019s unsurprising. Vivek Ramaswamy, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/abortion-is-a-form-of-murder-vivek-ramaswamy_5214841.html\">dubbed<\/a> \u201cTrump\u2019s press secretary\u201d by a pro-DeSantis Twitter account, and other candidates facing a very pro-Trump base generally avoid criticizing the former commander in chief.<\/p>\n<p>Simply put, Republicans gunning for the 2024 slot <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/trumps-competitors-seek-to-set-themselves-apart-without-scorning-maga_5122475.html?utm_source=partner&#038;utm_campaign=ZeroHedge&#038;src_src=partner&#038;src_cmp=ZeroHedge\">can\u2019t afford to scorn MAGA<\/a>\u2013and with his poll numbers down, DeSantis is an easier target than ever.<\/p>\n<h2>Parallels From History<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cThe front-runner is always the beneficiary of a crowded field,\u201d said Craig Shirley, a Reagan and presidential historian, in a May 25 interview with The Epoch Times.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cReagan faced a crowded field in 1980, and he was not polling as high as Trump is,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>While Shirley argued that 1980 is a good point of comparison for 2024, Larry Bartels, a presidential primary scholar, referred The Epoch Times to a more recent contest\u2013the one from which Trump most recently walked away the commander in chief.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think the best historical analogy is the 2016 Republican primary race,\u201d said Bartels, a political scientist at Vanderbilt University who has studied presidential caucuses and primaries for decades.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDonald Trump had the support of a substantial faction but less than a majority. He won because the rest of the party could not agree on an alternative candidate (Bush, Rubio, Cruz) quickly enough to produce a clear head-to-head matchup between Trump and someone else,\u201d he said in a May 25 email.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_5221507\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2023\/04\/25\/id5221507-trump-debate-3-1200x748.jpg\"><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a> Then-Republican presidential hopefuls Donald Trump and Jeb Bush speak during the presidential debate at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif., on Sept. 16, 2015. (Frederic J. Brown\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThe more opponents there are, the better off he [Trump] is,\u201d said Thomas Patterson, a political scientist at the Harvard Kennedy School, in a May 26 interview with The Epoch Times.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe other candidates really need to take this down to a \u2018Trump versus Them,\u2019 one-on-one [contest],\u201d he added, arguing that the votes in serious contention are those of people who already oppose Trump.<\/p>\n<p>Patterson, an expert on the relationship between government and the press, referenced one obvious impediment to Trump\u2019s challengers\u2013the extraordinarily large and loyal MAGA base. Yet, he cautioned that unfavorable legal decisions on Trump-related cases or other developments could cut into it.<\/p>\n<p>He believes the large field might not make much of a difference to the race as a whole unless the GOP remains divided into its national convention.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s no question that Bernie Sanders hurt Hillary Clinton\u2019s chances in 2016,\u201d Patterson said.<\/p>\n<p>Sanders claimed 46 percent of the nomination vote in Philadelphia that year, narrowly losing to the ex-senator from New York.<\/p>\n<p>Patterson also cited Ted Kennedy\u2019s run for the Democratic nomination against incumbent President Jimmy Carter in 1980 and Ronald Reagan\u2019s challenge to incumbent President Gerald Ford in 1976. In both cases, a hard-fought primary season battle was followed by failure in the general election.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2020361\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2016\/04\/11\/image-20160407-16275-18q0h3u.jpg\"><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a> The Republican Party\u2019s contested convention in 1976 when Gerald Ford beat Ronald Reagan to the nomination. (William Fitz-Patrick, Public Domain)<\/figure>\n<p>The size of the field matters less than \u201chow deep the hostilities go,\u201d Patterson said.<\/p>\n<p>Gerberg, for his part, said that a DeSantis nomination could alienate voters \u201cwho are Trump First before they\u2019re America First.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t think it helps that either of them are attacking each other,\u201d he continued, before adding that DeSantis has \u201ctaken the high road\u201d when it comes to answering Trump.<\/p>\n<h2>Competition Mounts<\/h2>\n<p>Shirley explained why having many candidates could work in Trump\u2019s favor.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe anti-incumbents are divided. Plus, they are in competition for staff, press attention, and funding,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Shirley doesn\u2019t think the increasing competition bodes well for President Joe Biden. The president has a national approval rating of 40 percent but just 33 percent when it comes to his actions on the economy, according to a recent poll from <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/ap-norc-poll-biden-approval-economy-guns-333ac2ea6b288fa2c1e6eac5020f3555\">the Associated Press<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAn incumbent over 50 percent is almost impossible to beat. Many candidates in the field speaks volumes about how weak Biden truly is, and it gets each candidate into sparring shape, whipping them into fighting form for the fall campaign. Plus, it gets the party more ready for the fall election as they get volunteers, money, and material earlier for the fall contest. An early and vigorous party debate is good for all around,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>In Shirley\u2019s view, the growing field of Republican aspirants \u201csimply means there are more Republicans to attack [Biden].\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCompetition is a good thing. That\u2019s what America was built on,\u201d said DeSantis ally Gerberg.<\/p>\n<p>Trump booster Bruesewitz is more skeptical about the talk of intraparty competition.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe people that are pushing that message are all DeSantis allies or DeSantis personalities,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Bruesewitz alluded to <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BowTiedRanger\/status\/1661518879628066816\">claims<\/a> that \u201ciron will sharpen iron\u201d in the upcoming primary season.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t think DeSantis is iron,\u201d he said, arguing that Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) offered stiffer competition against Trump in 2016.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2161419\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2016\/09\/23\/GettyImages-514708886-1200x758.jpg\"><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a> Then-Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump shakes hands with his rival, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), following the CNN Republican Presidential Debate in Miami on March 10, 2016. (Rhona Wise\/AFP\/Getty Images)<\/figure>\n<p>The legacy media may not go as easy on Florida\u2019s governor as some hope. Over the past few months, various articles (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.huffpost.com\/entry\/ron-desantis-trump-2024-elections-dangerous_n_6463fb43e4b06749be104b49\">here<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/newrepublic.com\/article\/170441\/ron-desantis-presidency-even-worse-trump\">here<\/a>, for example) have already asserted that DeSantis is somehow \u201cworse\u201d than Trump.<\/p>\n<p>Bruesewitz argued DeSantis won\u2019t stand up to pressure from Democrats.<\/p>\n<p>The former president, meanwhile, burns most intensely in the crucible of competitive campaigning and debate.<\/p>\n<p>Patterson suggested that Trump\u2019s famous verbal agility could allow him to outmaneuver the Florida governor.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt shouldn\u2019t be relevant, it shouldn\u2019t make any difference, but Trump has a really remarkable way of making physical characteristics and other things stand out,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019s been hacking away at his [DeSantis\u2019] smaller height,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<h2>The Mantle of \u2018Moderate\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>While Bartels sees DeSantis as a stronger contender than Trump\u2019s 2016 GOP competition, he made it clear that the Florida governor still has a lot to prove.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe is inexperienced in national politics, and it remains to be seen whether he will sideline the other non-Trump candidates quickly enough to force a clear head-to-head matchup with Trump (which he would probably but not certainly win),\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf DeSantis falters, it will be harder (though not impossible) for Scott or Haley or someone else to consolidate enough support quickly enough to force a clear head-to-head matchup with Trump,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>Susan MacManus, an emerita political science professor at the University of South Florida, had a more positive take on Scott and DeSantis.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese two candidates are relatively new faces and are from younger generations, in sharp contrast to Biden and Trump,\u201d she told The Epoch Times in a May 26 message.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_5075644\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2023\/02\/22\/GettyImages-1467150152-1200x800.jpg\"><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a> Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley speaks during a campaign event in the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College, in Manchester, N.H., on Feb. 17, 2023. (Michael M. Santiago\/Getty Images)<\/figure>\n<p>Gerberg suggested that DeSantis \u201ccan win over a lot more moderates\u201d than Trump before questioning why the ex-president was suddenly \u201ccoming from the Left\u201d on issues such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/trump-says-he-would-reach-great-deal-on-abortion-if-elected_5277417.html\">abortion<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDeSantis I don\u2019t think is particularly astute,\u201d Patterson said, referring to the governor\u2019s fights on Disney, abort<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>News Analysis It took a little while, but the GOP 2024 presidential field has suddenly and dramatically expanded. In a matter of days, Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Florida Gov.\u00a0Ron DeSantis officially joined the 2024 Republican presidential field, ending months of hints and speculation. Virginia Gov,\u00a0Glenn Youngkin, New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, and others could<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":152,"featured_media":1939434,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[543],"tags":[7428,12682,7196,6203,3758,3634],"class_list":["post-1939433","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-epoch-times","tag-analysis","tag-beneficial","tag-field","tag-gop","tag-growing","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1939433","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/152"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1939433"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1939433\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1939434"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1939433"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1939433"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1939433"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}