Lindsey Graham says he doesn't think Trump should announce a 2024 run tonight
- Sen. Lindsey Graham said he doesn't think Trump should announce a 2024 bid on Tuesday evening.
- Trump is widely expected to launch his third presidential campaign.
As former President Donald Trump is widely anticipated to launch his 2024 presidential bid on Tuesday evening, Sen. Lindsey Graham, an influential ally of his, said he thinks it's a bad idea.
"I don't think Trump should announce tonight," the South Carolina Republican told reporters at the Capitol on Tuesday, adding that he believes a majority of Republican senators think the former president should hold off.
"I think most people in the conference would prefer President Trump not to announce tonight," he said.
Trump, who's been teasing a third presidential run for months, is expected to announce his candidacy at 9 p.m. ET at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. His speech comes as many Republicans nationwide have balked at the prospects of a Trump 2024 run, blaming him for the party's underwhelming performance in the midterm elections.
Republicans failed to flip the Senate as Trump-endorsed candidates, including Don Bolduc of New Hampshire, Blake Masters of Arizona and Mehmet Oz of Pennsylvania, lost to their Democratic rivals. In key gubernatorial races, Trump-backed challengers were also defeated, like Kari Lake of Arizona and Doug Mastriano of Pennsylvania. While the party does appear on track to control the House, it'll likely be with a narrow majority, falling short of expectations of a red wave.
Assuming Trump does announce a presidential bid on Tuesday evening, he may not have many immediate endorsements from within his party.
Graham said he won't comment on Trump's candidacy until after Georgia holds its runoff election on December 6 between Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock and his GOP challenger Herschel Walker.
"I'm not doing anything until after December the 6th," Graham said.
Other Republican senators on Tuesday also avoided weighing in on Trump's potential 2024 candidacy.
"There's only one election that I'm concerned about right now and focused on, and that's the election in Georgia," Sen. John Neely Kennedy told Insider, refusing to say whether he'd support a Trump 2024 bid if he announces on Tuesday.
"It's Georgia, Georgia, Georgia," Sen. Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming said Tuesday.
Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, who handily won his reelection last week, said he's still grappling with the party's midterm losses when asked if he'd support a Trump 2024 bid.
"That's up to him," Rubio said. "We're still licking our wounds here about this election."
Trump may plow ahead with an announcement on Tuesday night despite the GOP's reluctance to publicly embrace him again just yet. Graham acknowledged that likelihood.
"Probably what's gonna happen is that Trump's gonna announce tonight," he said.