The Republican Party should "try something else" in 2024 with the presidential election and consider a governor for its nominee, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said Sunday.
"I like governors," the Utah Republican told CBS News' "Face the Nation" host Margaret Brennan after she asked if one of the at least six former and current GOP governors can defeat former President Donald Trump in the primary. "I think governors are great and have real experience."
Governors, he added, must act rather than "just do the performance thing."
"Potholes aren't partisan," Cox said. "You have to do those kinds of things. I think we have lots of amazing choices, and I'm really hopeful that we can turn the page and try something else."
Further, he said he thinks that any of the governors vying for the nomination could win, and "I certainly hope we'll give them a chance."
Former President Donald Trump is the current GOP primary frontrunner, according to national polls. He's joined in the race by current Govs. Ron DeSantis of Florida and Doug Burgum of North Dakota.
Trump is also being challenged by former Vice President Mike Pence, a onetime governor of Indiana; former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie; former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson; and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who also served as Trump's ambassador to the United Nations.
Cox also on Sunday talked about bans including on social media and transgender issues said to be enacted in the name of protecting children, but said firearms bans haven't been included because the incidents involving them in his state are driven by other matters.
"Those numbers increasing are not being driven by people getting caught in the crossfire or kids shooting each other," said Cox. "It's being driven specifically by mental health and suicide issues."
He added that more is being done to help keep guns away from children, but pondered what is "driving that desire to say life is not worth living anymore? How do we as a society collectively work to make sure the kids know that it is going to get better and there is a reason to stay here? That's a huge focus for us as well."
Utah was the first to restrict social media access, a law that goes into effect in March, and Cox said he's sure that social media companies will sue his state.
"We're going to be suing social media companies for the harm and damage that they're causing our young people," Cox said. "I suspect that at some point the Supreme Court will weigh in on this decision when it comes to restricting youth access. There's not just a correlation between social media use and an increase in suicide, anxiety, depression, and self-harm. There is a causal link there."
Utah has also paused access to gender transition care for children, and Cox said more data and information would be needed before a full ban would be put into place.
"It's been impossible, I believe, to get good information here in the United States right now because half the country doesn't want to touch it and the other half is convinced that they already know the answer," said Cox. "I've really tried to look elsewhere at conversations that are happening in other countries, specifically in Europe, where it's not quite as charged, looking at Sweden, Finland, France, and the U.K., other countries where they don't have the same culture war battles that we're having here."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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