Trump has long teased a run for the White House in 2024 and has continued to hold campaign-style rallies while not definitively saying whether he plans to enter the race. However, recent revelations from House Select Committee hearings on the Jan. 6 uprising are affecting his plans, according to a New York Times report. Now, Trump is considering announcing a run much earlier than expected, possibly even this month, in part as an effort to distract from the hearings, the report said. The Jan. 6 hearing this week featured allegations that were particularly damaging to Trump, including explosive testimony from Cassidy Hutchinson, who at the time of the Capitol attack was a top aide to White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows. Hutchinson said, among other things, that the White House deputy chief of staff told her that Trump was so eager to join his supporters on Capitol Hill that he fell behind the wheel of the presidential limousine. He also said that at one point he got so angry that he threw his lunch plate at the White House wall and that his response to rioters chanting “hang Mike Pence” was that the vice president “deserves it.” Trump denied all of Hutchinson’s testimony and called it “bad news.” But other Republicans have expressed concern that her testimony could hurt Trump. Sources close to Trump told The Times that he thinks announcing a 2024 bid soon could be good for him, though others in the party aren’t so sure. Among them is Rona McDaniel, the chairwoman of the Republican National Committee, who told Trump he should hold off on his announcement until after the November midterm elections, according to the report, out of concern that it could detract from the intermediate messages of the Republican Party. Democrats face an uphill battle to hold on to their majorities in Congress as Republican messaging has turned against President Joe Biden and sharpens soaring gas prices and rampant inflation. Republican Sen. Pat Toomey said this week he believed the Jan. 6 hearings were damaging to Trump, going so far as to say he didn’t think the former president would be the GOP nominee in 2024 even if he decides to be candidate. However, Trump has maintained high popularity among Republican voters, with early polls showing him easily ahead of other potential 2024 primary candidates such as Florida Gov. Ron DeSandis and former Vice President Mike Pence. Trump’s office did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.
