Trump Gets Endorsement From Republican Heavyweight

(Left) Republican presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump arrives at a campaign event at the Whittemore Center Arena in Durham, N.H., on Dec. 16, 2023. (Scott Eisen/Getty Images); (Right) House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, Republican of Louisiana, speaks to the press after a House Republicans caucus meeting at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Oct. 11, 2023. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.), the second-most powerful Republican in the House of Representatives, said Tuesday he is officially endorsing former President Donald Trump’s reelection bid.

“I am proud to endorse Donald Trump for president in 2024, and I look forward to working with President Trump and a Republican House and Senate to fight for those families who are struggling under the weight of [President Joe] Biden’s failed policies,” Mr. Scalise, the House majority whip, said in a statement on social media.

In a longer statement to Fox News and other media outlets, he said that “when Donald Trump was President, American workers and families were thriving.”

“In this race, there is one man who has a proven track record of being able to save our country and get us back on track: Donald Trump,” the Louisiana Republican said, adding, “He has done it once before, and I know he will do it again.”

The statement said that under the Trump administration, “grocery costs were affordable, and families could afford to buy a house and provide for their children.”

He also criticized the Biden administration’s border policy, noting the rampant illegal immigration along the U.S.-Mexico border. “Fiscal Year 2023 surpassed Fiscal Year 2022 as the worst year at the border with the most migrant encounters on record, 169 individuals on the terrorist watchlist apprehended attempting to enter illegally, and over 27,000 pounds of fentanyl seized by the CPB,” he said. “In Joe Biden’s America, our communities aren’t safe.”

Days before his endorsement, Mr. Scalise wrote that he believed there was a “blatant” attempt at “election interference” when Colorado’s Supreme Court ruled to remove President Trump from Colorado’s ballots. A narrowly divided majority on the state court argued that the former president violated the “insurrection clause” of the Constitution’s 14th Amendment’s Section 3, an interpretation the former president is likely to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

“They’re not even trying to hide it anymore. The Left knows Americans don’t want their radical agenda—so this is the only way they can win. Shameful,” Mr. Scalise wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Among the remaining 2024 Republican presidential candidates, the former president has by far the most endorsements from Republican members of Congress or governors, according to a compiled list. With Mr. Scalise’s announcement, President Trump has nearly 100 significant endorsements as of Tuesday, while former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who are trailing the former president in the polls, have fewer than two-dozen similar endorsements combined.

Mr. Scalise’s backing also comes as President Trump has obtained multiple endorsements from Senate Republicans in recent days, including Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.), Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), and Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.).

Iowa Caucuses

Mr. Scalise’s endorsement comes just days before the Iowa Republican Caucuses, which start later in January. They’re the first presidential contest in the Republican primary race.

An aggregate of recent polls from RealClearPolitics shows the 45th president has continued to dominate. He has nearly 63 percent support among potential Republican voters, ahead of both Ms. Haley and Mr. DeSantis by 50 points.

In Iowa, a Dec. 18 poll shows the former president has 52 percent in the Hawkeye State, while Mr. DeSantis, who was No. 2 in the survey, had 18 percent. Ms. Haley, who media outlets have claimed is gaining in the polls in recent days, had 16 percent, the survey shows.

Other Congressional Activity

In the House, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and House Republican Conference Chair Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) have also officially thrown their support behind President Trump’s 2024 bid.

After the ouster of former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), who left Congress late last month, Mr. Scalise threw his hat into the speakership race but ultimately came up short. Eventually, Mr. Johnson prevailed and is now the House speaker, albeit with a very narrow Republican majority.

House Republicans applaud as Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) (C) is elected the new speaker of the House at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Oct. 25, 2023. After a contentious nominating period that saw four candidates over a three-week period, Mr. Johnson was voted in to succeed former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.). Alex Wong/Getty Images

Weeks after he lost the speaker’s gavel, Mr. McCarthy endorsed President Trump after he declined to back the former president’s bid while he was speaker. During an interview with Fox News in mid-December, he signaled that he would be open to serving in a potential new Trump administration.

“I will help whether I’m in it or whether I’m out. I want the country to be successful. I tell the [former] president all the time, it’s about renewing, rebuilding and restoring this country,” he said said in an interview with Fox News.

In the Senate, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who is often ranked as one of the most unpopular politicians in the United States, has not made any endorsements for the 2024 race. Senate Majority Whip John Thune (R-S.C.) earlier this year endorsed Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), who dropped out of the race several months ago after dismal poll numbers. It’s not clear if Mr. Thune or Mr. McConnell will make any endorsements.