Washington Examiner senior political correspondent David Drucker argues that Republican voters are looking for someone like former President Donald Trump but may be hesitant to vote for him again.
Drucker appeared on Thursday’s Morning Joe on MSNBC to speak about the Republican Party and shifting support for Trump amid the former president’s push for “election integrity.” Drucker noted that Republican voters are not as invested in the claims of election theft that Trump has perpetuated.
“[Voters] don’t feel, necessarily, about Jan. 6 and Trump’s post-election behavior the way many Democrats feel, the way many swing voters feel, the way some Republicans feel,” Drucker said. “They want to talk about the future and the problems they have now.”
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These voters would prefer to speak about problems that directly affect their lives, such as growing inflation or the state of the pandemic, Drucker said.
Drucker also noted that Trump did not intend to let his 2020 loss go because he thinks that is what his voter base desires and that Republicans who do not uphold his view of the 2020 election will suffer. That’s why Drucker believes the Republican primaries will be a “huge test” showing what priorities Republican voters will uphold or if a more “future-minded” approach will take precedent.
Drucker was later asked about former Vice President Mike Pence and how his treatment of Trump has affected his election prospects. Drucker noted an interview he had with a Trump supporter who told him that Pence’s actions are “interpreted not as what he did on Jan. 6 in refusing to throw the election as Trump wanted him to, but as saying, ‘Oh, there was no voter fraud. So I’m not going to do this because the election was on the up and up. Everything was fine.'”
Drucker noted that this voter offered the unsolicited recommendation that Pence admit that voter fraud does exist and cooperate with the Jan. 6 commission.
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While other panelists alleged that Pence was playing games to appear loyal to Trump, Drucker argued that Pence’s best chance to run for president would be to use his decision to uphold the 2020 election results to differentiate himself from other Republicans. Drucker presented it as proof of character, with Pence theoretically saying, “I was willing to put my career on the line because this is what I believed in.” Drucker noted that this approach would not necessarily succeed, but it would provide Pence his best chance to stand out.
