Former President Donald Trump did not declare his candidacy for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination at a rally in Robstown, Texas, Saturday night.
But he might as well have.
During a segment of his well-attended rally, Trump all but admitted he will run again next cycle if Republicans do well during next month’s midterm elections, as many analysts believe they will.
“I will probably have to do it again,” Trump said.
WATCH:
“They say Texas is going blue; it’s not going blue: It’s Trump!” he told the Save America rally, per Newsmax. “The Texas way of life is under siege.”
“They’re against oil, God, and guns, and they say they’re going to do well in Texas. I don’t think so,” he continued.
“There is only one way to end this madness, and it’s madness,” Trump added. “If you want our country to fail, vote Democrat. Go out and vote up and down the slate, vote for good, great Republicans. You are incredible group of people. You’re tough, you’re brave, and brilliant.”
There are other signs that Trump is planning a new White House bid, such as recently completed upgrades to “Trump Force One,” his personal Boeing 757 that he used during his 2016 campaign.
The Washington Examiner reported:
Trump purchased the plane from Microsoft founder Paul Allen before having it laced with gold and the giant letters of his last name. The plane had been mechanically grounded at a small airport nestled in New York back in March 2021 until it was flown to Louisiana in November of last year, CNN reported.
Flight records indicate that it has made a string of short flights over recent days, including ones between 10 and 30 minutes.
Eric Trump teased back in July, “She’s back,” showcasing Trump Force One with a new fresh paint job and complete modernization. He also included a message from his father.
CNN also reported Trump’s plane has been upgraded and is making what likely are maintenance flights.
BREAKING: Brand-new Trump Force One plane SPOTTED arriving in West Palm Beach— 2024?! pic.twitter.com/XSdt5fOkUa
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) October 21, 2022
Also, there have been reports that Trump is honing in on a vice presidential pick: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.).
Robert Draper, a correspondent for The New York Times Magazine, said in an interview with The Daily Beast’s “New Abnormal” podcast last week “that Greene had risen quickly in her first term in Congress by using the same tactics she honed as a right-wing social media influencer harassing Democratic staffers, and she could shoot to the second-highest office in government,” Raw Story reported.
“Republicans kind of wanted to kick her to the curb immediately,” said Draper, per the outlet. “But instead, she became a fundraising dynamo, came to have this huge social media influence, and ultimately came to be very influential within the party itself.”
Draper also said that Trump had been seriously discussing Greene as a potential running mate since February, and while he has likely considered others, Greene has another quality that may propel her to the top of his list.
“She has been unflaggingly loyal to Trump throughout,” Draper said. “What is Trump concerned about most of all in a VP after the Mike Pence experience? Loyalty. He knows that if he needs someone to fight for him to overturn a presidential election. He has every reason to expect that Greene would be by his side and would be his proximate warrior.”
