Trump turns on his own party and labels Republicans who don’t want to talk about Arizona ‘weak and stupid’
Trump has critiqued Republicans, such as Representative Liz Cheney, for their disinterest in Arizona vote recount on conservative media
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Former President Donald Trump has labelled Republicans who do not want to discuss Arizona vote recount as ‘weak and stupid’ in an interview.
Speaking on One America News Network, Mr Trump said to anchor Chanel Rion about the vote recount in the state the GOP lost for the first time in 20 years in 2020.
It is a significant event in the ‘Stop the Steal’, a campaign based on the unverified claims that the last election contained widespread voter fraud has led to a high profile vote audit in Maricopa County.
“That’s all people ask me. They say ‘what’s going on in Arizona?’ They want to talk about the election fraud. The weak Republicans don’t want to talk about it,” He continued, “The weak Republican don’t want to talk about it. The weak or stupid or RINOs call them whatever you want, and yet the Republican voter that’s what they want to hear.”
RINO is an acronym, standing for ‘Republican in name only’, and is applied to figures like Rep. Liz Cheney who is vocal with her criticism that Mr Trump has too strong a hold on the party. She was recently ousted from her position of the chair of the Republican conference and was replaced with Rep. Elise Stefanik, who has been outspoken about the importance of the Maricopa County recount.
“The Republican voter wants the story. The weak Republican politician doesn’t want to talk about this story,” he said.
Despite leaving office in relative disgrace after becoming the only person to be impeached twice for his role in inciting the deadly insurrection at the Capitol Building on 6 January, interrupting the confirmation of President Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory, Mr Trump is a loud voice in congressional GOP politics.
After being banned from popular mainstream social media sites, he created his new blog ‘From the Desk of Donald Trump’, a website he used to comment on ongoings within US politics, where he announced his support for Ms Stefanik.
According to a poll by CNBC published in February, the former commander-in-chief’s approval rating remains high at 75 per cent but has dropped from 90 per cent. The most recent display of his grip on the party is Republicans in Congress voting to block a commission into the January riots, which will move on to a divided Senate.
Officials in Arizona have spoken out about the chaos caused by the recount. Arizona’s Secretary of State Katie Hobbs issued a letter, which was shared with NBC News, where she explained that the machines are no longer able to be used following the investigation.
"Unfortunately, after a loss of physical custody and control, no comprehensive methods exist to fully rehabilitate the compromised equipment or provide adequate assurance that they remain safe to use," she wrote.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments