Former US President Donald Trump is set to hold a so-called “revenge rally” on Saturday in Ohio against a Republican who voted for his impeachment in the aftermath of Capitol violence. While the majority of Republicans sided with Trump during his historic second impeachment, seven GOP senators and three House Republicans decided to vote against the party line, earning the wrath of the former president.
Trump has decided to campaign against the Republicans who voted to impeach him on a charge of inciting January 6 riots that left five dead including a Capitol Police officer. One of them is House Representative Anthony Gonzalez, seeking re-election in 2022 and former White House aide Max Miller has emerged as his challenger for the primaries after Trump endorsed him.
“We’re giving tremendous endorsements,” Trump told the conservative Newsmax channel on Friday. “Fake Republicans, anybody that voted for the impeachment doesn’t get it. But there weren’t too many of them. And I think most of them are being … primaried right now, so that’s good. I’ll be helping their opponent.”
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In his first public rally since the deadly attack on the Capitol, Trump aims to bolster allies, berate his enemies and cement his influence over the Republican Party. Trump has vowed to campaign against all 10 Republicans who voted for his impeachment and has also endorsed a primary challenger to Senator Lisa Murkowski, the only one of the seven Senate Republicans who is up for re-election in 2022.
The Ohio event will be the first of three public appearances, followed by a trip to the US-Mexico border with Texas Governor Greg Abbott on June 30 and a rally in Sarasota, Florida, on July 3.
With eyes on 2024, Trump is expected to repeat his false claims about the results of the 2020 presidential elections which he lost to Joe Biden. He told Newsmax that he’ll make an announcement about 2024 “in the not too distant future.”
“Right now, I’m helping a lot of people get into office, and we’re fighting the deep state, and we’re fighting [the] radical left. They’re after me. They’re after Rudy [Giuliani], they’re after you, probably,” he added.
