Global Courant 2023-05-12 05:58:37
Former President Donald Trump returns to New Hampshire participate in a CNN town hall created buzz for ardent supporters who enjoyed his dominance in the polls.
“I thought last night was a very clear message from President Trump,” said Republican real estate investor Steve Richard. “I think the audience reflected that over and over again.”
Answering questions from Republican and Independent Granite State voters, Trump repeated fraudulent claims that the 2020 election was stolen and said he would have Russia’s war in Ukraine “settled in one day.”
New Hampshire voters will be the first in the country to cast primary votes for a Republican presidential nominee early next year, but some Trump voters appear unsettled by several legal issues facing the former president.
Earlier this week, Trump was held liable for sexual abuse and defamation to writer E. Jean Carroll. She was awarded $5 million in damages after a jury unanimously sided with her, but Trump called Carroll’s story “fake” and “fabricated” Wednesday night.
Former President Donald Trump attends a CNN Republican Town Hall moderated by CNN’s Kaitlan Collins at St. Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire on Wednesday, May 10, 2023. / Credit: Will Lanzoni/CNN
June Dickerson, an independent who voted for Trump, says she believes him.
“He is a very honorable man,” she said. “He always said what was on his mind. He was always honest and forthright and I don’t believe lies.”
Louise Hoyt, a Republican voter, said she plans to vote for Trump again.
“They’re trying to stop him, that’s what they’re trying to do,” she said.
Trump’s attacks on Carroll, however, did not go down well with independent voter Melanie Mortan.
“I think it’s amazing that he got that conviction and yet continues to shame and put her down. It’s like he feels like he’s above the law. It’s despicable,” Morton said.
E. Jean Carroll, center, leaves Manhattan federal court, Tuesday, May 9, 2023, in New York. A jury found Donald Trump liable for sexually assaulting the advice columnist in 1996 and awarded her $5 million. /Credit: Seth Wenig/AP
The former president remains the clear front-runner in the 2024 Republican presidential primary, but for Kristin Burke, an independent who previously voted for Trump, she said it would be difficult to vote for him again.
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“I just think there was too much chaos when he was president and it was just too much for the country,” Burke said.
The former president scored more than 50 endorsements in the Granite State, but one top Republican is skeptical of Trump’s widespread support. Jason Osborne, the New Hampshire House Majority Leader who recently supported Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in the 2024 election, told CBS News that he is starting to see growing fatigue in support for Trump.
“I think it’s a slow bleed. It won’t be all at once. And this one town hall won’t make a big difference,” he said. “But over the course of the next several months as we go through this campaign, as Governor Ron DeSantis gets into the race and starts to get support, you’re going to start to see more and more of that support dwindle by the time we get to the primary elections.”
– Robert Costa contributed reporting.
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