CNN
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New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu on Sunday warned that former President Donald Trump’s removing from the 2024 major ballots in Maine and Colorado solely serves to help his “sufferer card” posture within the presidential race.
“This is able to solely … enhance his alternative to play that sufferer card down the street as we hit the primaries. It’s not useful in any respect, and I simply don’t assume it’s proper,” Sununu instructed CNN’s Dana Bash on “State of the Union.”
Trump’s authorized crew is predicted to attraction the 2 selections, based mostly on the 14th Modification, to take away him from major ballots in Colorado and Maine on Tuesday, in accordance with a supply aware of the plans.
Trump would attraction the Colorado ruling to the US Supreme Court docket and the Maine secretary of state’s choice in state court docket.
The 14th Modification, which was ratified after the Civil Struggle, says US officers who take an oath to uphold the Structure are disqualified from holding future workplace in the event that they “engaged in rebel” or have “given assist or consolation” to insurrectionists.
Nonetheless, the Structure does not spell out how to enforce the ban, and the obscure phrasing has led to questions on whether or not it even applies to the presidency.
Sununu, who has endorsed former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley within the Republican major, stated Sunday he desires Trump on the poll in “all 50 states” in order that “Nikki Haley can beat him in all 50 states.”
Requested about Haley’s failure to say slavery as a cause of the Civil War at a New Hampshire city corridor final week and subsequent effort to scrub up her reply, Sununu acknowledged it was a mistake.
“She cleared it up shortly, proper? Clearly, if one thing must be cleared up a bit bit, you would like you had stated it a bit in a different way the primary time, however it was shortly cleared up,” he stated. “It’s an absolute nonissue.”
Sununu added the current assaults from Haley’s GOP major rival Chris Christie solely underscore her rising stature within the race.
“Chris Christie’s a pal, however his race is at an absolute lifeless finish. He’s going to say something he can,” Sununu stated.
“I simply assume he’s going to make the correct choice ultimately. He desires to ensure this celebration comes collectively. He – I believe all these candidates comprehend it’s all the time sort of a protracted shot. And on the finish of the day the one particular person transferring is Nikki Haley. Chris Christie isn’t going to make up 30 factors within the subsequent three weeks, proper?”
Haley, Sununu stated, is the candidate who “could make up 5 or 10 factors and sort of give Trump that defeat that nobody thought was doable within the subsequent few weeks. And I believe that’s very more likely to occur. So, once more, I believe the voters are going to return Nikki’s method. I believe, finally, hopefully, Chris comes Nikki’s method. However that’s actually a choice for Chris to make.”
CNN’s Marshall Cohen contributed to this report.