Two close associates of Donald Trump have slammed the former president's decision to run for the White House again in 2024. Vice President Mike Pence and former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper consider that "it is time for new leadership" and even go so far as to accuse Trump of being the Democratic Party's best asset to stay in power in two years.
The most forceful of the two was Esper. In an interview on CNN, he noted that Trump's problem is not only that he "can't win elections," but that he is a de facto asset to energize Democratic voters. He also blames him for the Conservatives' poor performance in the last midterms. "He’s done more to help the Democrats than he has Republicans. There’s no reason why we shouldn’t have a bigger margin in the House, and we should’ve taken the Senate, and yet, we haven’t. If you want to govern with conservative principles, you have to win election, and Donald Trump can’t win elections," he analyzed.
"He is not fit for office"
Esper considers that the former president "is unfit for office. I thought his remarks were very subdued and uninspiring, and I think it’s time for the Republican Party — frankly, both parties — to move on to a next generation of leaders, and particularly leaders that can unify our country and get us back to a more normal governance where we treat each other with dignity and respect and we work on policy issues, and not on personal attacks.”
This stance does not detract, according to Esper, from the achievements made during Trump's time in office: "better border security, conservative judges, lower taxes, deregulation. I think you can get all those things with a new generation of Republican leaders who may be more online with what I consider myself, a Reagan Republican, who can do so without the personal attacks and self-centeredness of Donald Trump."
"We’ll have better choices than my old running mate"
Pence is also leaning toward ushering in a new generation of decision-makers. According to the former vice president, what Americans want is "to see America strong and prosperous in advancing the policies that we advance that left America more secure. And 7 million American jobs created. But the other thing that I’ve heard consistently is that the American people are looking for new leadership, leadership that will unite our country around our highest ideals, leadership that will reflect the civility and respect that most Americans have for one another."
"I think we’ll have better choices, better choices than my old running mate. I think that America longs to go back to the policies that were working for the American people. I think it’s time for new leadership in our country that will bring us together," Pence concluded.
