One of the most salient queries in all of the 2024 speculation we’ve seen thus far has to do with Donald Trump’s potential reelection campaign.
In reality, it’s not so much of a question as to whether or not he’ll run again, but just when he’ll announce that campaign. Conventional wisdom, (and much of the Republican Party), says that the former President would be wise to wait until after the 2022 midterms, in an attempt to avoid giving the Democrats a larger target to aim at.
And now, complicating the situation is a new directive from the RNC, who appears to be warning Trump that any announcement he makes would come with dire consequences.
The Republican National Convention would stop paying for former President Donald Trump’s legal expenses if he announces he’s running for president in 2024, according to a Thursday report.
The RNC is currently bankrolling several legal cases for Trump, including personal lawsuits and government investigations into him. That flow of cash would end once he announces his candidacy for president in 2024, according to ABC News. Some see the move as an incentive for Trump to delay announcing his candidacy at least until after the 2022 midterm elections, which Republicans are already poised to win.
Trump’s candidacy could cause a conflict of interest for the party.
RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel has previously stated that the Republican Party cannot be biased in favor of any one candidate in the party’s presidential primary.
“The party has to stay neutral,” McDaniel said in January. “I’m not telling anybody to run or not to run in 2024.”
Trump’s power over the Republican electorate is still rather palpable, and so the RNC would be wise to keep from upsetting him.
