Since Saturday evening, when former President Trump’s surprise endorsement rocked the U.S. Senate primary, North Carolina Republicans have been left to deal with the fallout.
Here is a roundup of coverage on the messy “GOP fight” raging in North Carolina.
Axios Charlotte: “Trump’s endorsement of Budd gives shape to a primary that will say a lot about the future of the Republican Party”
Associated Press: “Look no further for evidence of the GOP’s muddled governing agenda than battleground North Carolina, where party leaders packed into a convention hall Saturday night to cheer former President Donald Trump. Even with a high-stakes U.S. Senate election looming, the Republicans there were united not by any consistent set of conservative policies or principles, but by Trump’s groundless grievances about the 2020 election and his attacks against critics in both parties”
Associated Press: “Trump announced his endorsement of loyalist Rep. Ted Budd in the crowded Republican primary, adding a slap at former Gov. Pat McCrory, who has been critical of Trump’s falsehoods about the 2020 election. ‘You can’t pick people who have already lost two races and do not stand for our values,’ Trump said.”
CNN: “Trump’s endorsement of Budd, which came minutes after Lara Trump announced she would not be entering the primary field, appeared to catch some of his primary opponents in the audience by surprise. While the former President praised Budd from the stage, former North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory — who is also running in the GOP primary — sat stone-faced at a table in the crowd…”
News & Observer: “Trump made veiled comments that appeared to be about the other top-tier candidates — McCrory and Walker. ‘You can’t pick people who have already lost two races,’ Trump said…”
Politics NC: “Donald Trump sure does love to make news. Giving his first public speech since ignominiously exiting the national stage in January, the former president electrified North Carolina politics…Donald Trump’s behavior last weekend put North Carolina Democrats in a better position to win a U.S. Senate race for the first time since 2008.”
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