Frank LaRose’s Trump Criticism “Catching Up With Him” As He “Desperately” Tries to Outrun Anti-Trump Record
October 25, 2023
LaRose Previously Called Trump “Racist,” Was a “Never Trumper,” and Dismissed The Value of Trump’s Endorsement Earlier This Year
Columbus, OH – Frank LaRose’s history as a harsh Trump critic is “catching up with him” as he “desperately” tries to outrun his anti-Trump record – including calling Trump “racist,” being a Never Trumper, and being caught on tape dismissing the value of the former President’s endorsement earlier this year.
In a column today for WXVU, Howard Wilkinson highlights how LaRose is in a “pickle” and is being forced to “explain his past transgressions” on conservative radio when it comes to Trump – who is not a strong believer in the “forgive and forget” mindset. In the last week, Trump world weighed in on LaRose’s candidacy, making it clear they aren’t buying his excuses:
“It has not been lost on the Trump team that candidates like Frank LaRose have not defended President Trump’ or embraced his claims about the 2020 election…‘that’ll be a big inflection point throughout the election.”
After a “weak” Q3 fundraising haul, LaRose’s campaign is already on “life support.” Trump has repeatedly praised LaRose’s primary opponent Bernie Moreno, who is also endorsed by J.D. Vance, Trump’s handpicked Senator from Ohio, and Newt Gingrich.
Read more:
WXVU: Analysis: Frank LaRose wants Trump’s endorsement. Will he get it?
Howard Wilkinson
October 25, 2023
- Frank LaRose, the Ohio Secretary of State running for the Republican U.S. Senate nomination, desperately wants Donald Trump to show him some love by endorsing his candidacy.
- But his past seems to be catching up with him.
- If anyone is to get a Trump endorsement in this three-candidate race, the smart money is on Moreno.
- Even worse for LaRose is that he raised just over $1 million in the first quarter of his campaign, from July 1 through September 1. for his campaign so far. Moreno and Dolan are both very wealthy men and have loaned millions of their own money to their campaigns.LaRose has lent his campaign $250,000. He can’t match the millions of his opponents.
- LaRose showed up in August on NBC’s Meet the Press and committed what, in Trump World, is the greatest sin of them all. He suggested, in a backhand way, that Trump was not the rightful winner of the 2020 presidential election.
- Then there is the little matter of the 2016 presidential election, when LaRose positioned himself as a Never Trumper and supported then-Ohio governor John Kasich, one of Trump’s opponents for the GOP presidential nomination.
- “The president says things I would never condone, that I believe are false,” LaRose said, according to the Enquirer. “The most recent tweet is racist — whether it was intended that way or not, I’m not in the man’s mind and heart. I don’t know, that’s how it sounds to me.”
- “I would be shocked if Moreno didn’t get Trump’s endorsement this time around,” Cohen said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if Trump promised him that when he talked him out of the race last year.”
NBC: A new crop of GOP Senate candidates grapples with Trump-skeptical pasts
Henry Gomez
October 20, 2023
- When Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose called into a local radio show this month, the host grilled the Republican Senate hopeful over his past disdain for former President Donald Trump — like how he positioned himself as “Never Trump” before the 2016 election and how he described Trump’s 2019 social media tirade against Black members of Congress as racist.
- A source close to Trump, who was not authorized to speak on the record, told NBC News that “it has not been lost on the Trump team that candidates like Frank LaRose have not defended President Trump” or embraced his claims about the 2020 election. “That’ll be a big inflection point throughout the election,” the source added.
- Trump has encouraged, but not endorsed, Moreno’s candidacy despite the candidate’s past disparaging comments, which surfaced during his brief run in the state’s 2022 Senate primary.
- So far, LaRose’s campaign has had the hallmarks of a candidate worried about alienating Trump. His team attempted to clarify his remarks after an August interview in which LaRose spoke supportively of former Vice President Mike Pence’s role in certifying the 2020 election results. LaRose also recently fired the press secretary in his state office over personal tweets that made fun of Trump.
- But in the final days of the 2016 race, after the old “Access Hollywood” footage of Trump bragging about sexual assault leaked, LaRose told The Akron Beacon Journal he would not vote for Trump.
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