Former President Donald Trump will lead the first two rallies of his 2024 presidential campaign this weekend in an effort to invigorate his next bid for the White House. It comes as he faces ongoing criminal investigations and the fallout from disastrous 2022 midterms for the GOP that many placed at Trump's feet.
Trump headed to New Hampshire on Saturday, during which he gave a speech that TIME said was filled with "hour-long, stream-of-conscious remarks that seemed vamped." He then traveled to Columbia, South Carolina, for an official campaign event, during which he will introduce his "leadership team" in the state.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Steven Cheung, a spokesperson for the Trump campaign, told The Washington Post the South Carolina event "will show the significant support he has from grassroots leaders to elected officials."
However, some Republicans are distancing themselves from Trump, as evidence that he no longer carries the torch in the GOP mounts.
A poll cited by The Hill from the conservative South Carolina Policy Council found only 37 percent of the state's likely GOP primary voters said they would cast a ballot for Trump, compared to 47 percent who said they'd prefer someone else. Trump still has support among some key South Carolina politicians, including Sen. Lindsey Graham (R). Some polls also show him slightly ahead in a hypothetical matchup with President Biden.
Trump launched his 2024 run more than two months ago, but Saturday marked his first official campaign event. When asked how Trump's campaign was going, Terry Sullivan, the campaign manager for Florida Sen. Marco Rubio's (R) presidential bid in 2016, replied, "What campaign?"
Jan. 28, 2023: This article has been updated with new information about Trump's speech.
-
Denmark's 'pornographic' mermaid statue is in hot waterUnder the Radar Town will reportedly remove voluptuous Big Mermaid, despite statue being 'arguably a bit less naked' than Copenhagen monument the Little Mermaid
-
August 10 editorial cartoonsCartoons Sunday's political cartoons include a global plastics problem, GOP enthusiasm over tariffs, and more
-
5 thin-skinned cartoons about shooting the messengerCartoons Artists take on unfavorable weather, a look in the mirror, and more
-
DHS preps for major ICE expansion, rankling local law enforcementIN THE SPOTLIGHT As the Trump administration positions ICE as the primary federal police force, its recruitment efforts have been met with a less-than-enthusiastic response
-
Trump officials reinstating 2 Confederate monumentsSpeed Read The administration has plans to 'restore Confederate names and symbols' discarded in the wake of George Floyd's 2020 murder
-
Trump nominates Powell critic for vacant Fed seatspeed read Stephen Miran, the chair of Trump's Council of Economic Advisers and a fellow critic of Fed chair Jerome Powell, has been nominated to fill a seat on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors
-
JD Vance rises as MAGA heir apparentIN THE SPOTLIGHT The vice president is taking an increasingly proactive role in a MAGA movement roiled by scandal and anxious about a post-Trump future
-
Congress should 'step in' to block Trump's White House ballroom makeoverInstant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
ICE scraps age limits amid hiring pushSpeed Read Anyone 18 or older can now apply to be an ICE agent
-
Trump's global tariffs take effect, with new additionsSpeed Read Tariffs on more than 90 US trading partners went into effect, escalating the global trade war
-
House committee subpoenas Epstein filesSpeed Read The House Oversight Committee has issued a subpoena to the Justice Department for its Jeffrey Epstein files with an Aug. 19 deadline
