Thune endorses Republican Kari Lake in Arizona Senate race
Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., who is running to replace Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., as Senate Republican leader, has endorsed Kari Lake in the Arizona Senate race.
“The Senate race in Arizona is critical for securing a Republican majority in the Senate,” Thune said in a statement obtained by NBC News. “Kari Lake is the candidate in Arizona who will work to get the economy back on track and lower the cost of living for families, secure the border and enforce the law, and bring safety to our streets.”
“A vote for her opponent is a vote for Joe Biden’s dangerous agenda,” he added. “I am excited to endorse Kari Lake for Senate in Arizona.”
Thune’s endorsement of Lake comes after she told NBC News yesterday that “high profile” endorsements, including people vying for the Senate GOP leader post, were coming in a few days.
Biden campaign official says Trump 'can't expand beyond the hardcore MAGA voter base,' citing Haley's margins
Following last night's results, a Biden campaign official says Trump has “serious issues” to deal with ahead of the November general election, pointing to Haley's supporters who say the former president can't count on their votes.
The Biden campaign official said “upwards of 10% of voters remain undecided,” with those voters being “highly supportive” of the Biden administration’s policies, such as protecting abortion access, lowering prescription drug costs and the Affordable Care Act.
The official also pointed to polls showing support for Biden in diverse states with Black, Latino, white working class and suburban voters — a coalition that helped elect him to office in 2020.
The official said Trump’s “primary performances are a major warning sign for the GOP” based on the support Haley drew, adding that polling has shown a “significant share of moderate and Haley voters across the country” are saying that Trump can’t count on their votes in November.
The official also cited the Biden campaign’s “historic war chest,” with Biden outraising Trump as the former president faces a cash crunch amid a series of legal woes.
No Labels says it takes Haley 'at her word that she isn’t interested' in an independent bid for president
No Labels congratulated Haley on “running a great campaign and appealing to the large swath of commonsense voters” and said the group will “take her at her word that she isn’t interested in pursuing another route to the presidency.”
“No Labels is going to do exactly what we’ve been planning to do for months which is to gather our community to discuss the path forward,” the group said in a statement. "This Friday we will convene our 800 delegates from all 50 states to allow them to share their thoughts and decide where our 2024 project should go from here. We will have more to say when that meeting concludes on Friday.”
Prior to dropping out of the race, Haley had shot down the possibility of a third-party bid with No Labels, telling reporters last week that the group isn’t aligned with her conservative goals. “If I were to do No Labels, that would require a Democrat. I can’t do what I wanted to express with the Democrats,” she said.
No Labels has said it could put forward a third-party ticket with a Republican and an independent, rather than a Democrat. No Labels delegates are scheduled to meet virtually on Friday to discuss whether to run a third-party ticket in the 2024 presidential election.
RNC sets Friday vote for new leadership slate
The RNC’s 168-member body is set to formally vote on its new chair and co-chair in Houston late Friday morning.
There are no current challengers to Michael Whatley, a former Trump adviser, for the position of RNC chair or Lara Trump, Trump's daughter-in-law, for co-chair (the party’s No. 2 spot).
Both Whatley and Trump are expected to make brief remarks. Ronna McDaniel and Drew McKissick will also both formally step aside from their roles.
At that point, the new chair and co-chair can effectively bring in Chris LaCivita as the party’s chief operating officer, a role he’ll play while continuing to serve as Trump’s co-campaign manager.
RNC committeeman Henry Barbour confirms to NBC News that his draft resolution to bar the RNC from spending its funds on Trump-related legal expenses will not come up for a vote.
The resolution failed to get the support of a majority of members from at least 10 states.
LaCivita has already said that no funds will be used for legal purposes.
Sen. Susan Collins: 'I certainly am not endorsing anyone'
Sen. Susan Collins, a moderate Republican from Maine and sometime Trump critic, said she was "disappointed" that Haley decided to end her campaign, adding that she would not be issuing an endorsement.
Pressed on whether she was ruling out endorsing a candidate later this year, Collins told NBC News, "You never say never because you don’t know what’s going to happen. But I certainly am not endorsing anyone.”
Another occasional Trump critic, Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski, of Alaska, said when asked about Haley dropping out of the race, “I wish that she hadn’t,” while walking onto the Senate floor.
Collins and Murkowski were among the seven Republican senators who voted to convict Trump on impeachment charges after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
Joni Ernst's endorsement gives Trump all the Senate GOP leadership's support
Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, became the last of the Senate GOP leadership to endorse Trump for president, announcing it in a tweet this morning.
"We must beat Joe Biden and get this country back on track. Donald Trump has my support," Ernst wrote in a post on X.
Ernst joins Sens. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., John Thune, R-S.D., John Barrasso, R-Wyo., Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.V., and Steve Daines, R-Mont., in pledging their support for the former president.
Liz Cheney: 'We have eight months to save our republic & ensure Donald Trump is never anywhere near the Oval Office again'
Former Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., an outspoken Trump critic, urged voters to “save our republic” and “ensure” Trump isn’t re-elected in a post to X after Haley suspended her campaign this morning.
“The GOP has chosen. They will nominate a man who attempted to overturn an election and seize power,” she wrote. “We have eight months to save our republic & ensure Donald Trump is never anywhere near the Oval Office again. Join me in the fight for our nation’s freedom.”
Cheney’s post includes a link to “The Great Task,” a leadership PAC led by her.
Cheney emerged as a vocal critic of Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack and served as vice chair of the House Jan. 6 committee. She was removed as House GOP conference chair amid her repeated criticisms of Trump.
Haley's supporters more likely to say they won't blindly vote for the GOP nominee
Haley’s supporters are more likely to say they not will blindly support the GOP nominee, according to NBC News exit polls conducted yesterday in Virginia, North Carolina and California.
In each state, roughly one-third of primary voters said they would not vote for the Republican nominee regardless of who it is, and many were Haley supporters.
In Virginia, 69% of those voters backed Haley, while 79% of those voters in North Carolina supported Haley. But in California, a majority of the voters who responded “no” to that question (56%) supported Trump.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., released a statement endorsing Donald Trump after Nikki Haley suspended her presidential campaign. NBC News’ Mark Murray explains how important is it for McConnell, a Republican leader who has been critical of Trump, to give an endorsement to the presumptive GOP nominee.
McConnell and Trump fell out after Jan. 6 attack
McConnell and Trump have long had a frosty relationship that turned even icier after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. McConnell voted to acquit Trump in his impeachment trial related to the Capitol riot, but he gave a speech laying blame for the mob’s attack directly on Trump.
“There’s no question, none, that President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day. No question about it,” McConnell said on the Senate floor. “The people who stormed this building believed they were acting on the wishes and instructions of their president.”
The two men did not speak for at least three years.
McConnell has also publicly and repeatedly broken with Trump and his supporters on sending additional aid to Ukraine, and Trump has made racist attacks about McConnell’s wife, former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao.