The Republican candidates for Governor are all-in on Trump, and they’re already competing for his endorsement in their own season of “The Apprentice”
PENNSYLVANIA — Pennsylvania Republicans are all-in on Donald Trump, and this week, the Trump sweepstakes got serious as state Senator and likely gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano met with Donald Trump in New York and talked with him “about the gubernatorial race.” On a Facebook Live video this morning, Mastriano described the 75-minute meeting he had with Trump on Monday, explaining that Trump “had asked [him] to run some months ago” and told him that if he runs, he would campaign for him.
On Saturday, Mastriano hosted a fundraiser with former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani, who championed the Big Lie and led the fight — along with Mastriano — to overturn the election and throw out the votes of millions of Pennsylvanians.
“The Trump sweepstakes have officially begun as Doug Mastriano races to Trump Tower to grovel for the disgraced former president’s endorsement,” said Pennsylvania Democratic Party spokesman Brendan Welch. “Get ready for a year of these candidates tripping over each other to kiss the Trump ring and duke it out for his approval in their own season of ‘The Apprentice.’ The Republican candidates for Governor care more about Bedminster and Mar-a-Lago than Scranton and Pittsburgh, and they will do anything to earn Trump’s endorsement, even if it means promoting dangerous conspiracy theories, adopting divisive policies, and selling out Pennsylvanians.”
Mastriano may have a head start, but the rest of the likely gubernatorial field in the “super MAGA Trump” Republican primary is racing to catch up and prove their loyalty to Donald Trump. Announcing his campaign on Monday, Lou Barletta — who was endorsed by Trump in his failed 2018 bid for Senate — said he “would love” Trump’s endorsement and he’s “going to try to earn it,” before repeating false claims about the 2020 election.
At an event in Berks County last month, Bill McSwain trumpeted Trump’s support of him, saying, “if President Trump was willing to trust me […] I hope you will trust me, too.” Then last week, McSwain refused to say whether he believes the results of the 2020 election were valid. Congressman Dan Meuser also bought into the Big Lie, signing onto Texas’ lawsuit to throw out Pennsylvanians’ votes and voting to overturn the election on January 6th. Finally, Joe Gale — the first candidate to announce his campaign — has said he is running to “continue advancing the Trump movement” and “hold bad Republicans accountable,” highlighting that he was the first Pennsylvania elected official to endorse Trump.
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