- Bob Vander Platz told the NYT that evangelicals took notice of Trump’s remarks regarding the 2022 midterm elections.
- Conservative leaders said Trump “held the blame on the pro-life movement” for the party’s losses.
- If Trump is to win the Iowa caucuses in 2024, he will need to secure strong support from social conservatives.
Former President Donald Trump easily won the all-important battlefield state of Iowa in both the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections.
And he maintains considerable support among Hawkeye Republicans heading into 2024.
But as recently prominent Conservative leader Bob Vander Platz Said The New York Times showed Trump’s “character” after suggesting that he performed poorly nationally in the 2022 midterm elections as Republicans defended widespread abortion restrictions.
Trump: ‘It’s not my fault that the Republicans didn’t live up to expectations’ I have written On the Truth Social account in January. “I was 233 to 20! Poorly handled by many Republicans, especially those who adamantly insisted on no exceptions in cases of rape, incest, or even my mother’s life, It was the ‘abortion issue,’ voters.”
Vander Platz, president and CEO of The Family Leader, a conservative nonprofit that strongly opposes abortion and same-sex marriage, said the state’s influential evangelicals echoed the former president’s comments. He told The Times he hadn’t forgotten.
“It shows Trump’s character that he held the movement accountable during his lifetime,” Vander Platz told the newspaper. “If you’re trying to win the Iowa caucuses, I won’t put the base under the bus.”
vander platz backed Texas Senator Ted Cruz on Trump in the 2016 Republican Presidential Primary and 2022 Presidential Election interview Semafor said the former president’s chances of winning were the “biggest hurdle” in the 2024 election, telling The Times that many conservatives were open to other candidates.
“My concern, like that of many others, is about how America decided about Donald Trump,” he told the newspaper. I think it’s time to push the next leader who can.”
Former President Donald Trump speaks during an election event in Davenport, Iowa, March 13, 2023.
AP Photo/Ron Johnson
After announcing his 2024 campaign shortly after the 2022 midterm elections, Mr. Trump almost monopolized the Republican presidential district until the past few weeks. But that dynamic has changed.
Last month, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy entered the 2024 Republican primary.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is also a front-runner for 2024 and could pose the biggest threat to Trump securing the Republican nomination.DeSantis visited I visited Iowa earlier this month as part of a book tour.
Former Congressman and former Indiana Gov. Mike Pence could also enter the Republican primary, whose political rise is rooted in support from social conservatives, a key group. It is very likely that he will siphon support from Trump among them.
As Iowa maintains first place in the nation’s race for the Republican nomination, the caucuses have lost none of their importance among any of the major players vying for the state.
Trump came in Second place After beating Cruz at the 2016 Iowa caucuses, he’s continuing his efforts to take first place in next year’s GOP contest.
“For the former president, it’s all about winning the Iowa caucuses,” Vander Platz told The Times. “If he loses, it’s a ‘game on’ for everyone else’s nominations. If he wins the Iowa caucuses, there’s no stopping him.”
