U.S. Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-TN) just became the latest Republican U.S. senator to endorse former President Donald Trump's 2024 presidential election campaign.
Hagerty did so in a four-message Twitter thread that he posted to his official account on Sunday.
Hagerty began:
It is my honor to give my whole-hearted endorsement to Donald J. Trump to be the next President of the United States. I was honored to previously serve in his Administration.
— Bill Hagerty (@BillHagertyTN) April 16, 2023
In the remaining three messages of the Twitter thread, Hagerty explained why he has chosen to endorse Trump's 2024 campaign.
Hagerty writes:
Under President Trump, our border was secure, our nation was energy independent, & we witnessed a Blue-Collar Boom that lifted up American workers of all backgrounds. Under President Trump’s leadership, we engaged with strength, & we encouraged our allies to stand strong with us.
Hagerty continued his explanation in message three, which reads:
President Trump stood up against Communist China, brought an end to Obama’s failed approach of ‘leading from behind,’ and revived our military and law enforcement as they witnessed support from their Commander-in-Chief that had been lacking—and has now gone missing again after two years of Joe Biden’s presidency.
With all of this in mind, Hagerty wrote, "The mandate for a strong America has never been clearer." And, that's where Trump comes in.
"I look forward to working again with President Trump to help our great nation find its way back from the precipice to the exceptional role we can and must play as a nation," Hagerty concluded.
Hagerty's endorsement of Trump continues the trend of big-name Republicans coming out in favor of Trump's 2024 campaign.
According to the Washington Examiner, by its count, Hagerty is now the eighth Republican U.S. Senator to support Trump's campaign for the presidency.
Per the Examiner:
The other eight GOP senators to weigh in on the primary race for Trump are Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Eric Schmitt (R-MO), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), J.D. Vance (R-OH), and Ted Budd (R-NC). Budd endorsed Trump on Thursday.
The big question heading into 2024, though, will not be how many Republicans will support Trump but how many non-Republicans will do so.
Poll after poll makes it clear that Trump has the Republicans' votes. But, the concern for Republicans is that the Republican votes that Trump does have will not be enough to overcome opposition.
