(The Center Square) – Former President Donald Trump made waves across the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia, throwing support behind a foe and tearing down key support.
Trump, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, made stops in Virginia and Capitol Hill, meeting with congressional leaders and Virginia Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin.
During an interview with Fox News, Trump was asked about former Maryland Republican Gov. Larry Hogan’s U.S. Senate campaign. The former president expressed a desire to see Hogan win the seat in hopes of securing a GOP majority in the Senate despite the former governor’s harsh criticism of Trump.
“I'd like to see him win. I think he has a good chance to win. I would like to see him win. And we've got to take the majority,” said Trump.
The former president underscored the importance of putting the party and country first.
“We have to straighten out our country. I know. Other people made some strong statements, but I can just say from my standpoint, I'm about the party and I'm about the country,” Trump stressed.
When asked if he was endorsing Hogan, Trump responded, “essentially, I would be endorsing him.”
In response to the endorsement, a Hogan spokesman, Michael Ricci, said that, essentially, the former governor wouldn’t be returning the favor.
“Governor Hogan has been clear he is not supporting Donald Trump just as he didn’t in 2016 and 2020,” Ricci told Fox News.
Trump may be able to overlook Hogan’s criticism, but he can’t seem to move past a chide from House Freedom Caucus chairman and Virginia Rep. Bob Good’s early endorsement of Trump GOP presidential rival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
The former president has been vocal in his support of Good’s primary opponent , state Sen. John McGuire. Virginia's Republican primary is Tuesday.
Following a meeting with GOP lawmakers on the Hill, Trump took to Truth Social to take another swipe at Good.
“Bob Good is BAD FOR VIRGINIA, AND BAD FOR THE USA. He turned his back on our incredible movement, and was constantly attacking and fighting me until recently, when he gave a warm and ‘loving’ Endorsement - But really, it was too late,” the former president wrote.
“The damage had been done! I just want to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, and the person that can most help me do that is Navy Seal and highly respected State Legislator, John McGuire, a true American Hero. John, who fought the Cartels on the Front Line, and then came home and fought the drug dealers in Virginia, will ALWAYS PUT AMERICA FIRST….”
Earlier in the week, Trump met with Youngkin in a closed-door meeting at the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling to strategize how to win in the commonwealth. Youngkin told ABC 13 News Now that the commonwealth appears “competitive” in the presidential race.
“There's a lot of interest in how this election is going to go," Youngkin said. "So our political teams have been coordinating on how best to do that and we had to sit down and talk about it and we talked about Virginia and, and how I was able to win my election in 2021. And the lessons learned.”
A recent poll by Roanoke College shows Trump and Biden are neck-and-neck in the commonwealth, despite Biden beating Trump by over 10% in the 2020 election and Hillary Clinton handily winning Virginia in 2016.
Virginia hasn’t been identified as a swing state headed into the November elections, but the Trump campaign's recent interest in the commonwealth may shift the state into focus.
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