Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP
New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu participated in the GOP panel discussion in Orlando, Florida, on November 15, 2022.
CNN
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New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu said Sunday that he will decide “in the next week or two” whether he wants to mount a bid for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024 and enter an already crowded field. of the candidates.
“When I start doing something, I’m 120%,” the governor said on CNN’s “State of the Union” in an interview with Jake Tapper. “Soon, we will make a decision, maybe in the next week or two. And we will go or not go,” he added.
Sununu’s statements come as the list of 2024 GOP hopefuls continues to expand, with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott entered the race last week.
Now in his fourth term, the New Hampshire governor said finding out where he can be most effective will factor into his 2024 decision.
“I still have a job 24/7,” he said. “The money is lined up. Support is lined up. There is a way to win. That’s all – the boxes are checked. The family rides, which is always a big one. I just had to make sure it was right for the party and right for me,” she said.
Sununu also said he wants to make sure he’s not too useful outside the presidential race as he looks to steer the Republican Party away from the chaos of the current primary front-runner, former President Donald Trump. .
“Make sure that where I want to see the party go … that maybe I speak a little differently, I speak in a different way. I want more candidates to be empowered. Can I do that more effectively as a candidate ?Can I do that more effectively as someone who travels the country, maybe speaking more freely?” Sununu said.
“I just want what’s best for the party,” he continued. “It doesn’t have to be Chris Sununu’s show all the time.”
With Trump leading the current GOP primary poll, Sununu said the former president is playing the “victim card.”
“Former President Trump is doing better than anyone thought. He’s playing this victim card. The media, the DA in New York, all these things are working in his favor,” said the governor. The fact that we’re talking about Donald Trump as a victim, I mean, that’s amazing in itself. But that doesn’t last, necessarily. That doesn’t mean the support he has now will be a vote nine months from now.
Sununu avoided harsh criticism of his other potential opponents, calling DeSantis a “very good governor” and praising him for embarking on a tour of retail politics in New Hampshire. The two met for an hour earlier this month when Florida’s governor visited the Granite State to meet with state lawmakers.
But Sununu suggested Sunday that DeSantis’ focus on cultural battles back in Florida is avoiding more important issues, such as government efficiency.
“I’m not saying we shouldn’t talk about culture war stuff, don’t get me wrong,” he said. “I just don’t believe the government will solve a culture war.”
DeSantis’ recent pledge to consider pardoning some of the participants in the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol is not “disqualifying” for a presidential candidate, Sununu said, even otherwise it was something he would do himself.
Meanwhile, Sununu said the agreement in principle struck by the White House and Republican negotiators to raise the debt ceiling is likely a victory because some members of both parties are now rejecting the deal.
“It’s a miracle, I mean release the pigeons,” said the governor. “Washington is actually moving forward. Both sides seem a little disappointed, which means it’s probably a good deal, actually.
