It would be a "terrible idea" for former President Donald Trump to announce his reelection bid this week, as it's too soon after the midterm elections and because Georgia's Senate winner has not yet been determined, Republican New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, who won his reelection bid, said Sunday.
"People want to move away from politics as you hit Thanksgiving, as you hit Christmas, as we’re spending time with families as we’re trying to figure out how we’re going to fill our oil tanks with all these high fuel prices," Sununu said on ABC News's "This Week." "Now's just a horrible time for big political statements."
Instead, he said he thinks Trump should wait until early 2023, even though the announcement will be "great for the media."
"Saturday Night Live will probably love it, but for the rest of us, we’re going to focus on spending time with our families and kind of taking a breath in the quiet of a nonpolitical world," said Sununu.
He also wouldn't commit to supporting Trump in 2024, as there will be a "wide-open race" on the Republican side. The governor also said he does not believe President Joe Biden will seek reelection.
Sununu acknowledged some people want him to throw his hat in the ring, but he pointed out he has a "state to run."
"Unlike Congress, I don't get a vacation," he said. "It's a 24/7, 365-day job. I have to balance a budget in the next couple of months, unlike Congress. I just have a lot of demands on me and I love that. It’s a hard job but, man, it is so fulfilling when you get stuff done."
Meanwhile, Democrats pulled out wins in last Tuesday's elections because voters were more worried about extremism than other issues such as inflation or energy shortages, said Sununu.
"I don't think anyone likes the policies out of D.C.," he said. "No one likes paying, you know, six bucks for a gallon of heating oil, especially with winter coming. But what I think people said was, 'Look, we can work on these policies later, but as Americans, we've got to fix extremism right now.'"
Sununu, though, said that when he talks about extremism it doesn't necessarily mean he's talking about Trump.
"There's a whole stream of things out there that can be deemed extreme, on one side and the other," he said. "I think there's an extreme left and an extreme right. In this sense, I think a lot of folks were focused and are saying, "Look, it's not about payback; it's about solving problems."
The attack on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband Paul just before the election also worried voters, said Sununu, and they responded by "putting in folks that are going to come together and work across the aisle."
Republicans must also start moving away from denying the results of elections, such as the 2020 presidential race, as that is "nothing that works," said Sununu.
Some Republicans had called for Sununu to run for the Senate, in the race that GOP candidate Don Balduc eventually lost to incumbent Sen. Maggie Hassan, but he said Sunday has no regrets about running for reelection.
"I love being governor," he said. "With all due respect, the Senate’s the B-team compared to being a governor. I mean, it’s just not even a question. I get to be the CEO, I get to design systems, I get to implement policy, I get to challenge myself to engage with constituents, find their problems, and fight those barriers."
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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