Jonathan Ernst/Reuters
- Mick Mulvaney says just three people could defeat Trump in a 2024 GOP presidential primary.
- He said Gov. Ron DeSantis, Sen. Tim Scott, and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson could beat Trump.
- “Donald Trump is sometimes his own worst enemy when it comes to campaigning,” Mulvaney added.
Former acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney thinks just three people could seriously challenge President Donald Trump in a 2024 presidential run.
“[Florida Gov. Ron] DeSantis could give him a run for his money. [South Carolina Sen.] Tim Scott can give him a run for his money. Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson could give him a run for his money,” Mulvaney told Politico’s Tim Sutton. “It’s a short list.”
Mulvaney, a former GOP congressman from South Carolina, served simultaneously as acting White House chief of staff and Director of the Office of Budget and Management under Trump from January 2019 to March 2020.
“By the way, there’s one other person who could beat him — which is himself,” Mulvaney told Politico. “Donald Trump is sometimes his own worst enemy when it comes to campaigning.”
After being replaced as White House chief of staff by Mark Meadows, Mulvaney took a diplomatic post as special envoy to Northern Ireland, but quit in protest after the January 6 insurrection on the US Capitol. He recently signed on as a political contributor with CBS News ahead of the 2022 midterms.
Trump has repeatedly teased a 2024 comeback presidential run without making an official announcement that would make him subject to certain campaign finance and other reporting requirements.
“I don’t want to comment on running, but I think a lot of people are going to be very happy by my decision, “Trump told the Washington Post in a recent interview. “Because it’s a little boring now.”
Trump also said he believes that other possible 2024 presidential contenders, including former Trump administration officials, would step aside if he entered the race.
“If I ran, I can’t imagine they’d want to run,” Trump told the Post. “Some out of loyalty would have had a hard time running. I think that most of those people, and almost every name you mentioned, is there because of me. In some cases, because I backed them and endorsed them.”
Trump took credit for the success of DeSantis, a rising star in the Republican Party, saying of his 2018 gubernatorial run: “As soon as I endorsed him, the race was over.”
Scott, also a rising star in the party, has expressed interest in possibly serving as Trump’s running mate in 2024, saying in February, “I think everybody wants to be on President Trump’s bandwagon, without any question.”
The Rock, for his part, has discussed the idea of running for president with a “goal to unite our country,” but said it would be ultimately up to the American people.
“Not sure our Founding Fathers ever envisioned a six-four, bald, tattooed, half-Black, half-Samoan, tequila drinking, pick up truck driving, fanny pack wearing guy joining their club,” he tweeted in April 2021. “But if it ever happens it’d be my honor to serve the people.”
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