March 17 - 2024 campaign updates

Former President Donald Trump listens as Sen. J.D. Vance speaks at a campaign rally in Vandalia, Ohio, on March 16.

GOP Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio on Sunday slammed what he called a “ridiculous attack” on Donald Trump following the former president’s comments Saturday in which he warned of a “bloodbath” for the US auto industry and country should he lose the election.

“It shows how low the media is willing to go to cover for Joe Biden,” he continued, pointing to the importance of “real journalists” and “X.com.” 

Vance, who has been floated as a possible running mate for the former president, said that “Trump has great instincts on people” but that speculation is “way premature,” adding he has not spoken with Trump about his pick for vice president.

“I like being a senator, and I plan to keep on being a senator, but of course, if the president asked me, I would have to think seriously about it,” Vance said.

Former President Donald Trump arrives to speak at a Super Tuesday election night party at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, on March 5.

Former President Donald Trump on Sunday renewed his commitment to debating President Joe Biden, saying he would do it “anytime, anyplace,” and would “even debate minutia.”

Trump on Fox News pushed back on potential criticism he could receive for agreeing to debate the presumptive nominee of the 2024 Democratic Party but not his GOP primary opponents, asking rhetorically, “Why would I go out, say ‘Oh, let’s go, let’s have some fun, and be shouted at by 12 people that have absolutely no chance of being elected?’”

“I always want to debate the Republican versus the Democrat, no matter what the score is. I wanted to debate last time. I always want to debate the Republican and the Democrat. Those are the two people left and they should debate,” he said.

Biden weighed in Saturday night on the prospect of debating the presumptive Republican nominee, but declined to say definitively if he expects to come face-to-face with Trump. 

“I don’t know if he’s serious,” Biden told CNN after the Gridiron Dinner when asked if he expects to debate the former president ahead of the 2024 election. 

CNN’s Kaitlan Collins contributed to this report.

Former President Donald Trump said Russian President Vladimir Putin “probably” played some role in the death of opposition leader Alexey Navalny in a Russian prison, but largely avoided placing blame on the Russian leader.

“I don’t know, but perhaps. I mean, possibly, I could say probably. I don’t know,” Trump said in an interview airing Sunday on Fox News.

He said Navalny was a “young man,” so “statistically he’d be alive for a long time, if you go by the insurance numbers, he’d be alive for another 40 years,” acknowledging, “something happened that was unusual.”

Trump has repeatedly declined to criticize Putin, an authoritarian leader whom he often praises, and came under fire last month for calling his own legal entanglements “a form of Navalny.”

The former president also declined to commit to continuing aid to Ukraine, saying “I feel very hurt because that’s a war that should have never happened,” and claiming, without evidence, that he could have avoided the conflict.

Former President Donald Trump told an entirely fictional story on Saturday about how he had supposedly outwitted his Democratic opponents by releasing “the tape” of the 2019 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that was a key factor in Trump’s first impeachment.

Speaking at a Saturday campaign rally in Ohio, Trump claimed he let Democrats make “wilder and wilder” claims about what he said to Zelensky, “and then we released the tape.” Trump proceeded to claim that when Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California, who was then the speaker of the House, “heard” this tape, she was angry that she had been deceived by her allies’ previous “false” descriptions of the call; he claimed that Pelosi said to “her people”: “What the hell did you get me into? You hear this call? He didn’t do any of this stuff!”

Trump claimed that Pelosi was told, “Let’s just pretend he did and keep going forward.” He continued, “After they made up the story and then after that they heard the tape, they died. They didn’t know that phone call was taped. That was one good case of a phone call being taped. And they were taped and they got caught.”

Facts First: Trump’s story is a complete fabrication. No tape of his call with Zelensky was ever released; Pelosi could not possibly have been angry with her allies after hearing a tape of the call because she has never heard a tape of the call. In fact, as of nearly five years after the July 2019 call, there is no known US recording of the conversation. What Trump’s White House actually released in September 2019 was a rough written transcript of the call — which corroborated, rather than contradicted, a government whistleblower’s central allegations about what Trump had said. Pelosi spokesperson Aaron Bennett said Sunday that Trump’s story is “fact-free nonsense.”

Read more here.

Sen. Bill Cassidy, one of the only Republicans who voted in favor of impeaching former President Donald Trump for his attempt to overturn the 2020 election, still won’t say whether he will endorse him in 2024. 

“At this point all I can say is that I plan to vote for a Republican for the presidency of the United States,” the Louisiana Republican said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

Cassidy previously told CNN that he didn’t think Trump would be able to win a general election and called for him to drop out of the race over the former president’s alleged mishandling of classified documents.

Former President Donald Trump holds a campaign rally in Rome, Georgia, on March 9.

Former President Donald Trump said in an interview airing Sunday he would make a decision “pretty soon” on supporting a national abortion ban.

Trump told Fox News last month he remained undecided about backing a national abortion ban but said, “More and more I’m hearing about 15 weeks.” The New York Times also reported Trump has privately expressed support for a 16-week abortion ban.

Later in the interview, Trump acknowledged the political potency of the issue for Republicans, saying he thinks it is “very, very hard to get elected” without “the three exceptions,” without naming what he was referring to.

“You have to go with the exceptions, and the number of weeks, I’ll be coming out with a recommendation, fairly soon. I think the recommendation will be accepted,” he said without elaborating further.

On the issue of abortion, Trump said, “you have to go with your heart. But beyond that, you also have to get elected.”

Republican Rep. Mike Turner defended Donald Trump on Sunday after the former president made a series of controversial remarks about election outcomes, immigration and the US Capitol insurrection during a rally in Turner’s home district.

Asked about Trump’s comments, specifically that there would be a “bloodbath” in the auto industry and the country if he lost the general election in November, Turner said, “The president’s statements were about what would happen in the auto industry” adding that it is “incredibly important that that be accurately portrayed.” 

Trump warned Saturday that if he were to lose the 2024 election, it would be a “bloodbath” for the US auto industry and the country. The remark came as the former president promised a “100% tariff” on cars made outside the US, arguing that domestic auto manufacturing would be protected only if he is elected.

At the same rally, Trump went on to characterize undocumented immigrants who commit crimes as “animals.”

Turner said Sunday there are, “many statements he [former President Trump] makes that many Americans would not agree with and many that they would” and defended the former president’s immigration rhetoric and policy saying, “When you talk about what happening at the border, this is absolutely a crisis that has been created by this administration.”

Former Vice President Mike Pence, who is not endorsing his former boss Donald Trump for president, said Sunday that Trump’s reference to people convicted for their role in the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol as “hostages” is “unacceptable.”

While Pence said that Capitol rioters who were “caught up in the moment” are entitled to due process of law for “non-violent activities,” he maintained, “The assaults on police officers – ultimately an environment that claimed lives – is something that I think was tragic that day and I’ll never diminish it.”

Rep. Nancy Pelosi is pictured during an interview with CNN’s “State of the Union” on March 17.

Rep. Nancy Pelosi on Sunday cited Donald Trump’s “bloodbath” comments at an Ohio rally as she sought to establish the stakes for Democrats in the 2024 presidential election.

Trump warned Saturday that if he were to lose the 2024 election, it would be a “bloodbath” for the US auto industry and the country. The remark came as Trump promised a “100% tariff” on cars made outside the US, arguing that domestic auto manufacturing would be protected only if he is elected.

“We’re going to put a 100% tariff on every single car that comes across the line, and you’re not going to be able to sell those guys if I get elected,” Trump said during a rally in Vandalia, Ohio. “Now, if I don’t get elected, it’s going to be a bloodbath for the whole – that’s gonna be the least of it. It’s going to be a bloodbath for the country. That’ll be the least of it.”

The comment came in the midst of an extended riff on the auto industry, unions, the transition to electric vehicles and auto plants in Mexico. 

California Rep. Adam Schiff is pictured during an interview with CNN’s “State of the Union” on March 17.

California Rep. Adam Schiff said Sunday he partially blames the Department of Justice for the risk that some of former President Donald Trump’s trials will not be completed before the 2024 presidential election. 

Schiff warned that the Justice Department’s pace and Trump’s tactics of filing legal motions and appeals in his court cases could lead to “delaying justice.”

“There is a chance that he could evade justice by delaying justice. This is a tried and true tactic of Trump throughout his career,” Schiff said.

House Speaker Mike Johnson holds a news conference at the Capitol in Washington, DC, on January 30.

House Republicans, who have seen their time in the majority devolve into a seemingly endless series of internal party feuds, now have a new problem: GOP lawmakers targeting other sitting members in their primaries.

In at least four primaries – in South Carolina, Illinois, Texas and Virginia – Republican members are actively campaigning against one of their own, inflaming tensions in the conference.

Rep. Matt Gaetz, a member of the far-right Freedom Caucus, has already begun targeting two of the GOP incumbents, Reps. Mike Bost of Illinois and Tony Gonzales of Texas.

However, the primary attacks are going both ways, with many Republicans targeting seats held by Freedom Caucus members.

Half a dozen House Republicans who are normally allied with leadership, including House Armed Services Chair Mike Rogers, are slated to attend an upcoming fundraiser for the Republican candidate challenging Freedom Caucus Chair Bob Good, according to multiple sources.

Good was one of the eight Republicans who voted to oust McCarthy and has created his share of enemies inside the conference with his brash style – including fellow Virginia Republican Rep. Jen Kiggans, who is among those boosting Good’s primary opponent, Navy SEAL John McGuire.

President Joe Biden’s campaign effort brought in $53 million in February, a sign of accelerating donor interest over a month that saw the election rematch crystalize between Biden and former President Donald Trump.

The figure, which includes funds from Biden’s campaign, the Democratic National Committee and related joint fundraising committees, contributed to the $155 million Biden had in the bank at the end of February.

Other top cash-generating moments included the Republican primary in South Carolina, which brought in $1.6 million for Biden’s effort, and an email from First Lady Jill Biden following the release of special counsel Robert Hur’s report, which raised $853,000.

President Joe Biden attends a meeting at the White House in Washington, DC, on January 22.

President Joe Biden told attendees at Saturday night’s Gridiron Club Dinner that “freedom is under assault” at this moment in history, according to reporters in the room.

Earlier Saturday, former President Donald Trump – Biden’s likely general election rival – told his supporters in Ohio, “If this election isn’t won, I’m not sure that you’ll ever have another election in this country.”

President Joe Biden toasted to a free press at Saturday evening’s Gridiron Club Dinner in Washington, DC, while making jokes about age and his likely 2024 campaign rival Donald Trump.

“One candidate’s too old and mentally unfit to be president, the other guy’s me,” Biden said of his predecessor and likely 2024 opponent, according to pool reporters in the room.

The Gridiron Dinner is hosted annually in Washington and attended by hundreds of journalists, including from CNN.

The president also told dinner attendees, which included cabinet secretaries and members of Congress, that he admired the “courage” of the journalists in the room and made a toast to a free press, according to reporters. Biden added that he is doing “everything” to bring detained Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich back from Russia.

Former President Donald Trump arrives for a rally in Vandalia, Ohio, on March 16.

President Joe Biden’s campaign spokesperson James Singer said in a statement Saturday that former President Donald Trump “wants another January 6” after Trump said during a campaign speech that there would be “bloodbath” if he lost the 2024 election. 

“American people are going to give him another electoral defeat this November because they continue to reject his extremism, his affection for violence, and his thirst for revenge,” Singer said.

Trump’s remark came as he promised a “100% tariff” on cars made outside the US.

The campaign manager for Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s presidential bid said Saturday that Nicole Shanahan, an attorney and entrepreneur, is among the candidates being considered as the independent candidate’s running mate. 

Amaryllis Fox Kennedy, Kennedy’s daughter-in-law and campaign manager, wrote on social media acknowledging Kennedy’s team met with Shanahan.

Fox Kennedy highlighted Shanahan’s advocacy on a range of issues, including “children’s and maternal health,” and said the campaign’s meeting with Shanahan was “one of the highlights of the VP discernment process.” 

In the lengthy social media post, Fox Kennedy also expounded on the qualifications of other candidates on the VP shortlist, including NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers, praising his “consistent record of keeping the courage of his convictions.” 

CNN reported Wednesday that Rodgers engaged in conspiracy theories about the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in conversations with two people, including CNN’s Pamela Brown. Rodgers responded Thursday, saying he has “never been of the opinion that these events did not take place” without denying the content of those conversations.

On Thursday, Kennedy campaign spokesperson Stefanie Spear called the shooting “a horrific tragedy.”

Former President Donald Trump on Saturday mocked Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and Nathan Wade, the former lead prosecutor in the Georgia election subversion case who resigned Friday.

“We have these two low lives trying to take down a president of the United States,” Trump said at a rally in Vandalia, Ohio.  

The former president’s remarks come after a Fulton County judge ruled Friday that either Willis or Wade would have to leave the case as they had a romantic relationship. Wade sent his letter of resignation just hours later, saying he was resigning “in the interest of democracy.”

Trump and more than a dozen co-defendants face state charges in Georgia stemming from their alleged efforts to overturn the former president’s 2020 electoral defeat. Trump has pleaded not guilty.

Read more on Friday’s ruling here.

Former President Donald Trump speaks to supporters during a rally at the Dayton International Airport in Vandalia, Ohio, on Saturday.

Former President Donald Trump suggested Saturday that if he were to lose the 2024 election, “it’s going to be a bloodbath for the country.”

The remark came as Trump promised a “100% tariff” on cars made outside the US.

Trump appeared at the rally just outside of Dayton with Ohio Senate candidate Bernie Moreno, whom the former president has endorsed in the GOP primary to take on Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown. Trump called Moreno to the stage toward the end of the remarks, and the Senate hopeful praised the former president as “a good man.”

Moreno had previously been critical of the former president. CNN’s KFile found that Moreno deleted tweets in which he called Trump a “fake republican” who stokes “hatred and fear,” and said there was “no scenario” in which he would support Trump.

Five days after suggesting he was open to cuts to Social Security and Medicare, former President Donald Trump promised Saturday to protect entitlements and claimed that President Joe Biden’s policies and the influx of undocumented immigrants arriving in the US would destroy them. 

Trump suggested that his energy policies, including domestic drilling, would enrich the economy and leave entitlements untouched. 

On the trail, Trump has repeatedly vowed to “always defend Medicare and Social Security,” but on Monday, he told CNBC, “There is a lot you can do in terms of entitlements, in terms of cutting and in terms of also the theft and the bad management of entitlements.” 

His campaign said Trump was “clearly talking about cutting waste, not entitlements.”

Republican businessman and Senate candidate Bernie Moreno speaks in Vandalia, Ohio, on March 16.

Republican businessman Bernie Moreno, who is battling for a chance to unseat Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown, said Saturday that Ohioans can rid the state of the “RINO establishment” and give him the opportunity to crack down on undocumented immigrants in America. 

Moreno, who is backed by former President Donald Trump, also gave a firm warning to those who are “in this country illegally.”

“Starting in January of 2025, you will be deported,” Moreno said at a rally just north of Dayton, Ohio, where Trump is set to speak this afternoon. 

Moreno is competing in Tuesday’s GOP primary against Secretary of State Frank LaRose and state Sen. Matt Dolan.

The Trump-backed candidate had previously been critical of the former president. CNN’s KFile found that Moreno deleted tweets in which he called Trump a “fake republican” who stokes “hatred and fear,” and said there was “no scenario” in which he would support Trump.