Trump hires former GOP congressman — despite endorsing his opponents in elections

In December, Donald Trump gave an emphatic endorsement to health insurance lobbyist Addison McDowell in the race for a North Carolina congressional seat. McDowell was running against former Republican Rep. Mark Walker who was trying to win back his old seat.

Three months later, the former president has hired Walker himself.

Taking to Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump proclaimed Walker would be doing outreach to "minority communities" for the Trump campaign. The GOP nominee touted another key point he thinks makes Walker, who is white, perfect for minority outreach — while he was in the House, he launched a "paid internship program on Capitol Hill" for HBCUs, which stands for historically Black colleges and universities.

The former congressman also has strong relationships with the evangelical mega-churches, as a former pastor.

Still, the experience wasn't enough for Trump to endorse Walker for the primary and runoff in the North Carolina race.

Last Tuesday, Walker and McDowell were the two highest finishers in the G.O.P primary, meaning they are headed for a May runoff. It is unclear if the new hire on the Trump campaign means Walker is expected to drop out of the race.

Walker previously ran for U.S. Senate in North Carolina in 2022, but he lost in the primary to then-Rep. Ted Budd. Trump endorsed Budd over Walker in that case, too.

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McDowell has been promoting his Trump endorsement throughout the GOP Primary, and Trump's son Don Jr. rushed in to help, The Triad City Beat reported on Feb. 22. The ex-president's son was only able to draw a crowd of about 50 people. The piece said Trump Jr. spoke for about six minutes and Walker for about a minute.

Despite being a lobbyist and long-time political operative, McDowell railed against "career politicians."

Trump Jr. played up language about "the swamp," which is the phrase Trump uses to attack establishment Republicans.

“All I know is that President Trump is a fighter and he was a great president and I’m proud to have his endorsement, and I’m the only candidate in this race with his endorsement," McDowell said at the time.