Former President Donald Trump has reportedly tabled the idea moving forward with a third party, as he now believes he will not be convicted in the Senate and is instead turning his focus to assisting primary challenges against never-Trump Republicans.
The New York Times' Maggie Haberman tweeted Sunday: "In last 24 hours, after floating through a few folks that he was considering creating a third-party as a way to keep Senate Rs in line ahead of impeachment, Trump has been talked out of that and is making clear to people he isn't pursuing it, per ppl familiar w his thinking." With President Joe Biden having been given a peaceful transfer of power and the Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol getting further in the rearview, Trump reportedly believes it is now far less likely that 17 Republicans will join Senate Democrats to convict him on the House article of impeachment: inciting an insurrection attempt.
Haberman tweeted: "Trump has started to believe there are fewer votes to convict than there would have been if the vote had been held almost immediately after Jan. 6, the people familiar with his thinking said." Just 10 never-Trump House Republicans, led by Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., the daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, voted to impeach Trump in the House. It is likely those Republicans will be among the primary targets of Trump's political influence, fundraising, and rallies in the coming months and years.
Haberman tweeted: "There's also the fact that threatening a third party while simultaneously threatening primaries makes no sense, which some folks gently pointed out to him." One of Trump's most loyal and senior administration officials, former ambassador and acting Director of National Intelligence Ric Grenell, told Newsmax TV's "The Count" on Saturday that Trump has told him "personally, numerous times, he does want to run again." Grenell also emphatically rejected talk of a new Patriot Party, saying Trump needs the Republican Party as much as it needs him.