GOP senators say Trump caught ‘off guard’ by Harris’s strength
by Alexander Bolton - 08/05/24 6:00 AM ETRepublican lawmakers say the Trump campaign was caught off guard by President Biden’s decision to drop his reelection bid and that the former president’s team has faltered in responding to the surge of momentum behind Vice President Harris.
Some Republican senators think former President Trump should have seen the swap atop the Democrat ticket coming and crafted a messaging and political strategy weeks ago.
They see Trump’s awkward discussion about Harris’s racial heritage at the National Association of Black Journalists convention as a clear sign the Trump campaign hasn’t yet hammered out a workable strategy for Harris.
GOP lawmakers also view Trump’s selection of Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) as his running mate as evidence that Trump didn’t expect Biden to drop out of the race. They worry Vance’s outspoken views on restricting abortion and his claim that “childless cat ladies” run the country play right into the message that Harris and Democrats will center their campaign on in the fall.
One Republican senator who spoke to Trump before he announced Vance as his running mate said the former president expressed skepticism that Biden would drop out of the race.
“I think they were caught off guard. I think they were surprised,” the senator said. “I think there was shock when the Democrats revived [their party] really quickly” and unified support behind Harris.
“I think she’s more formidable than Republicans give her credit for. It’s going to be a short election, that favors her. It’s going to be sprint. We’re used to these long elections. This one’s going to end up being short. That helps her,” the lawmaker said of Harris, who announced she had raised $310 million for her campaign in July.
more
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4808507-republicans-trump-campaign-surge/
