Scott, Christie, Ramaswamy — get out now
Opinion by Washington Examiner
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/scott-christie-ramaswamy-get-out-now/ar-AA1jMwgd?ocid=msedgntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=eb113919415e4a33a3265c89ef82c6db&ei=5
The more data that come in from this past Tuesday’s election, the more it becomes clear that the Republican Party must not nominate former President Donald Trump if they want to maximize their chances of winning the White House and Congress.
In addition to Kentucky, where Republican Daniel Cameron lost to Gov. Andy Beshear (D-KY) after a final television ad blitz touting Trump’s endorsement, Republicans in Virginia outperformed Trump’s 2020 vote percentage in every district.
Since Trump became the party's leader, Republicans have lost the House, the Senate, and the White House. Republicans have also lost control of more governors' mansions and more state legislatures since Trump came to power. Electorally, Trump has been a continuous disaster for the Republican Party. If Republicans are tired of losing, and they should be, the solution is easy: Move on from Trump.
Each candidate running against Trump understands what a disaster it would be if he were at the top of the ticket again in 2024. That is why they are in the race. And they also refuse to acknowledge that by staying in the race, they are helping Trump secure the nomination.
His lead is strong in national polls, but the Republican presidential primary is decided state by state, and Trump is not above 50% support in either of the first two contests. The latest Des Moines Register poll had him at just 43% in Iowa, and the latest St. Anselm poll had him at 45% in New Hampshire.
Trump is vulnerable in these matchups. If he loses them both, his national numbers will crumble. He knows this, which is why his campaign continues to spend millions of dollars attacking Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL). DeSantis and former Nikki Haley, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, are the strongest of the pack struggling to catch Trump. She delivered another strong performance and continues to impress, a fact reflected by Trump using some of his stock of childish insults against her.
After three debates, the other candidates have had ample opportunity to see if their messages resonate with voters. They don’t.
In New Hampshire, where former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie was once in double digits, he has dwindled to just 6%. And that is his best state. Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), in his home state of South Carolina, trails Haley badly, 22%-6%. If Scott can’t win his own state, he has no chance of securing the nomination. Businessman Vivek Ramaswamy is not competitive in any early state. Whatever he is doing, it is not winning him the support of Republican primary voters.
If Christie, Scott, and Ramaswamy believe the party needs new leadership, as they claim, and that voters across the country deserve something better than a rematch between the 80-year-old incumbent and his 77-year-old predecessor, they should demonstrate it by dropping out of the primary immediately and let DeSantis and Haley finish the fight against Trump.