Appearing on MSNBC with host Alex Witt, former Rep. Dave Jolly (R-FL) explained that Donald Trump has no choice but to continue holding rallies if he has any hope of getting the Republican Paty presidential nomination in 2024.
While Trump currently remains an odds-on favorite to land the nomination again despite losing in 2020, the ex-Florida lawmaker said his message about having had the last presidential election "stolen' from him will have lost its impact in 2024 and he already has GOP challengers "nipping at his heels."
Using Trump's Ohio rally -- where the ex-president raged about the election results as part of a litany of complaints over how the world is treating him -- as a jumping-off point, Jolly said Trump needs his rallies if he hopes to keep his name out there with Republican voters.
After the MSNBC host noted a conservative pollster warned the Republican Party needs to shed Trump or lose in the 2022 midterms, Jolly stated he agreed.
"That pollster is spot on, Alex," Jolly stated. "Republicans will win the House of Representatives unless Donald Trump screws it up for them -- you can take that to the bank. And by screwing it up, look what he did in the Georgia runoffs; hats off to Georgia Democrats for mobilizing and getting their candidates elected."
"He needs his ego soothed, but there are two things happening in politics right now," he continued. "Donald Trump has to get out there, or he's going to lose his front-runner status to people like Governor Ron DeSantis, a Nikki Haley. Ron DeSantis is nipping at the heels of Donald Trump; Trump knows it and has to get out there and that's what you're seeing in the rallies."
"The second thing is Donald Trump is terribly off message,' he said of Trump's Ohio rally. 'Yes, these are the greatest hits like at an Eagles concert, but this is not what the Republican Party is going to run 2024 on. It's not what others are going to run on. Donald Trump needs to stay out there if he wants to be in the game but he has to get on-message or he will continue to lose."
Watch below:
MSNBC 06 27 2021 12 46 13youtu.be
