The lukewarm response to former President Trump's announcement that he will go for a third shot at the White House could provide a key opening for other Republicans who've been hesitant to challenge him in 2024.
Trump's unusually restrained performance Tuesday night earned praise from his top allies, but for skeptics it was more reflective of Trump's seemingly weakened position in the GOP after a lackluster midterm election performance.
Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), riding high on his midterm win with the wind at his back, and other would-be challengers could see it as opportunity to go ahead with a challenge.
"I think there are a lot of people today looking at that speech and seeing an opening," one Republican strategist said. "He's up there trying to explain the midterms, calling himself a victim. I think it came off as kind of a show of his weaknesses rather than a well-articulated argument for running again."
Of course, Trump has been counted out before. When he launched his first — and so far only — successful bid for the White House in 2015, many Republicans shrugged off his candidacy early on, believing that he was more of an attention-seeking pariah than a serious contender for the presidency.
The Hill's Max Greenwood has more on the situation Trump faces.
Meanwhile...one House Democrat is eyeing legislation that would bar Trump from serving in office under the 14th Amendment "for leading an insurrection against the United States."
And former Defense Secretary Mark Esper says he thinks Trump is "unfit for office" and should not run for president in 2024.
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