Trump backs Jack Ciattarelli in New Jersey's Republican primary for governor
Trump's endorsement came Monday in a Truth Social post and gives Ciattarelli's campaign a boost as he competes against two other Trump supporters and a state senator who has been critical of the president.
The president's endorsement and Ciattarelli's gratitude to Trump in a social media post of his own reflect the president's influence in the party, even in Democratic-leaning New Jersey.
Trump's endorsement hinted at Ciattarelli's earlier criticism of Trump during his first run for the White House a decade ago, when he said Trump wasn't fit for the presidency.
'Jack, who after getting to know and understand MAGA, has gone ALL IN, and is now 100% (PLUS!),' Trump said in the Truth Social post.
Ciattarelli said in a post on X that he was 'truly humbled and honored' by the endorsement.
'It's time to unite our party, win big in November, and make New Jersey affordable and safe again,' he said.
Bill Spadea, a former radio host who's also running in the June 10 primary and has called for replicating the president's approach in New Jersey, suggested the president was backing Ciattarelli because some polling indicated he was in the lead.
'(Trump) endorsed a poll not a plan,' he said on X. 'We have the only plan and core principles to restore common sense to New Jersey government.'
Trump's endorsement comes after he met earlier this year with Ciattarelli at his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club.
Ciattarelli's campaign has said it sought the president's endorsement and pointed to his performance in the 2024 election in which the president flipped former blue counties red.
New Jersey has been reliably Democratic in U.S. presidential and Senate elections. But its odd-year gubernatorial contests have seesawed between Democrats and Republicans.
Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy, a two-term incumbent, cannot seek a third-straight term under state law. Democrats are also locked in competitive primary.
In addition to Ciattarelli and Spadea, former Englewood Cliffs Mayor Mario Kranjac and state Sen. Jon Bramnick are seeking their party's nomination.
Ciattarelli, 63, is an accountant and small business owner who served in the state Assembly and county office. He ran unsuccessfully for governor in the previous two cycles. In 2021, he came within a few percentage points of defeating Murphy. In 2017, he lost in the GOP primary to then-Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Bloomberg
4 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
European Gas Falls Further Ahead of Zelenskiy-Trump Meeting
European natural gas prices fell to a fresh 2025 low ahead of US President Donald Trump's meeting with Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who faces pressure to reach a peace deal with Russia that involves ceding territory. Benchmark futures extended their drop after the market plunged last week in anticipation of Trump's meeting with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. An agreement to end the war — however steep the possible concessions for Ukraine would be — could ease global supplies if more Russian energy eventually comes to the market.
Yahoo
20 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Baumgartner 'paints it red' with re-election fundraiser alongside guest speaker, Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan
Aug. 17—The din of 200 protesters outside was imperceptible in the Davenport Grand event room, where hundreds of Republican lawmakers and key supporters gathered for the biggest re-election fundraiser yet for freshman Congressman Michael Baumgartner. The party has had a remarkable year in D.C., where the president and Republican majorities successfully approved the "Big Beautiful Bill," launched a campaign of mass deportations and renewed border security, in line with their promises to their voters last year. And while those policies have proven contentious, driving near-constant protests whenever Baumgartner has made public appearances in Spokane, they also appeared to have animated confidence inside the Davenport Grand on Sunday, with Baumgartner and allies hopeful to overcome the odds and retain power in next year's midterms. Baumgartner has, as recently as last year's campaign, acknowledged the daylight between his brand of the Republican Party and that of President Donald Trump. A product of a Harvard education and student of global affairs seemingly cut from the cloth of Bush-era conservatism, Baumgartner on Sunday demonstrated a closeness with the president and the MAGA movement, symbolized by the marquee presence of guest speaker Congressman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio. Ultimately a fundraiser for Baumgartner's re-election campaign, the event was a hodgepodge of a victory lap, a presentation on the sausage-making of federal politics and politicking, a peek at the personal peculiarities of various lawmakers, and a recollection of grievances with the political left. Jordan spoke at length about the 2017 "Russiagate," for instance, arguing Democrats and former President Barack Obama had manipulated and weaponized intelligence suggesting Russia had interfered in the presidential election on Trump's behalf. "Remember the left is crazy," Jordan said. "It's crazy to defund the police, it's crazy to let a man play in women's sports, it's crazy not to have a border. It's crazy to let a Chinese spy balloon fly across the country. ... I bet Baumgartner would have shot it down." The focus of celebration Sunday night was the "Big Beautiful Bill," the landmark 2025 fiscal package approved by a narrow Republican majority in July which the congressman and guest speakers highlighted for its tax cuts. Baumgartner explained the necessity of the reconciliation process to avoid a filibuster and approve that bill, for example. Jordan, a regular on Fox News and notable message-maker for the Republican party, spoke at length about the challenges of political messaging. "Our business is a communication business," Jordan mused Sunday, explaining with some joy the maneuvering necessary in framing a message to the media or questioning a witness in front of Congress and the C-SPAN cameras. "What I try to do with the big hearings is work backwards, what do you want the press saying?" Jordan added. "My favorite is what I call the punch in the face question. You ask the question ... and you don't even care what they say. What's important is the question." Speakers argued Washington state could benefit from the politics on the rise in Washington , D.C. Alluding to the current use of National Guard troops to crack down on violent crime in D.C., former Mayor Nadine Woodward suggested Spokane would also benefit from a military crackdown to take back its streets. The fundraiser dinner, with a minimum requested donation of $75 and top donor categories in the thousands, was called "Paint it Red," an homage to the efforts to maintain and expand the Republican majority. "We're not only going to keep Eastern Washington red; we're going to spread it to the rest of the state," Baumgartner said. Woodward and fellow former Spokane Mayor David Condon helped to highlight the work of conservatives and the need to fund those efforts, but Jordan presented the most dramatic depiction of the stakes. "What's at stake going into 2026?" Jordan said. "Real simple. We don't win." Key figures in the Republican party, whether Elon Musk or the president himself, would be personally targeted if that were to happen, Jordan warned. Baumgartner won't suffer from empty campaign coffers next year. He easily outraised his many competitors in the crowded 2024 election to replace retiring Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers, totaling more than $1.3 million in campaign contributions by the end of the election season. More than a year before the 2026 midterms, his re-election campaign has already raised more than $460,000 and spent over $210,000. Eastern Washington Impact Awards Baumgartner also celebrated five regional residents with "Eastern Washington Impact Awards," implicitly, if not explicitly, a celebration of prominent conservatives or symbols of a Republican cause. These include some of the more significant Republican donors in Spokane, such as Cindy Zapotocky, the former chair of the Spokane County GOP and "mentor to conservative candidates" who Baumgartner credited in part with his successful entrance into politics. Also celebrated was Barry Baker, who Baumgartner described as a personal friend and who serves as chairman of Baker Construction and Development and is a member of several area boards, such as the Modern Electric Water Company, which declined to pass along state-funded rebates to its poorest customers in 2024 due to partisan political concerns. The other honorees include anti-progressive activist Sheldon Jackson, the CEO of Selkirk Development, who has recently become a champion for Trump's calls to institutionalize the chronically homeless; Adams County Sheriff Dale Wagner, who is currently being sued by Washington State for allegedly coordinating with federal immigration enforcers in violation of state law; and Lauren Matthew, a West Valley High School student athlete who placed second at the 2025 2A 400-meter dash, losing to a transgender East Valley student athlete, Veronica Garcia. As transgender athletes in school sports have become an increasingly prominent issue in conservative politics, Baumgartner has used Matthew's story to highlight how young women deserve "the chance to compete on a level playing field and have her hard work honored," as he stated in a June speech on the House floor. Baumgartner's recognition of Matthew as "the rightful state champion" inspired perhaps the loudest and longest applause of the awards ceremony.
Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
How Donald Trump is reshaping Washington, D.C., in his image
U.S. President Donald Trump is presiding over one of the most dramatic transformations of Washington, D.C., in a generation, as he makes monumental changes to the historic White House complex, federalizes local police as part of a "beautification" campaign, takes over the district's performing arts centre and dictates what should be on display in the national museums. Trump is taking a more hands-on approach to district issues than any of his recent predecessors as he tries to remake the capital in his image, all while rooting out what he calls "wokesters," homeless people, hardened criminals, illegal migrants and others. In Trump's D.C., there will be no more "savagery, filth and scum," he said. As he tightens his grip on the federal district he says has been badly managed for decades, Trump has flatly ruled out granting D.C. statehood. It's something residents have long demanded, and it would stymie his efforts to exert more control over what happens in this city of 700,000 people. "What we want to do is make Washington, D.C., the greatest, most beautiful, safest capital anywhere in the world, and that's going to happen," Trump told reporters at an event on Wednesday. "Already they're saying, 'He's a dictator,'" he said of his Democrat critics. But Trump insisted D.C. "is going to hell. We've got to stop it." This week, federal agents have been out on patrol in parts of the district, arresting dozens of suspected criminals in the first few days of the Trump operation. The city's Democratic mayor, Muriel Bowser, initially called the deployment "unsettling." But she has been largely deferential to Trump, saying she's powerless to stop his efforts and that more officers on the streets "may be a positive." Barbara Perry, co-chair of the presidential oral history program at the University of Virginia and a board member of the White House Historical Association, told CBC News that Trump's D.C. intervention is truly unprecedented. "No other president has taken such an interest in all the different facets of Washington, D.C.," Perry said. "Most presidents usually have a lot more on their plate than worrying about redesigning the White House. And crime and law enforcement — those have long been thought of as local issues," she said, especially after the district was given home rule in the 1970s. New ballroom At the centre of Trump's ambitious plan to spruce up the capital is a massive new ballroom on the White House grounds. While there are strict guidelines for what can be built on that revered site on Pennsylvania Avenue — smaller changes in the past have taken months or even years to study and approve — Trump officials have already said construction on the hulking space will get underway in September. Trump is pitching a $200-million US, 90,000-square-foot structure expected to subsume the existing East Wing and some of the property's green space — a legacy piece for the former real estate mogul. The proposed building is nearly double the size of the existing structure. PHOTOS | Trump's proposed ballroom at the White House: "Part of his real estate developer persona is plastering the name of Trump over anything that he ever owned or wanted to own," Perry said. "He sees himself as a businessman and a developer and the desire to build something like this giant ballroom — it's right in his strike zone." The plan has drawn fierce criticism from architectural purists but praise from others who say the current building is too small for large state functions. His defenders say Trump is right that unsightly tents have to be rolled out onto the lawn when more than 250 people are invited to a formal event. Stephen Ayers, the interim CEO of the American Institute for Architects, which was entrusted by president Theodore Roosevelt more than a century ago to be the "perpetual guardian" of the White House's architectural integrity, urges caution. "1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is the people's house, a national treasure and an enduring symbol of our democracy. Any modifications to it — especially modifications of this magnitude — should reflect the importance, scale and symbolic weight of the White House itself," Ayers said. Trump's proposed structure "raises concerns regarding scale and balance," he said, and any additions should be adjusted so that they align with "the White House's historic character." Others have been more blunt, calling the planned addition "hideous," "ugly," "dumb" and gaudy given the liberal use of gold. "I can see where this ballroom would be helpful and needed. We struggled with guests lists when I was there," said Anita McBride, the former chief of staff to ex-first lady Laura Bush, who helped plan social events. "With tented events, you really can't say you're having dinner at the White House, because you're not. You're on the lawn. It's not as attractive, in my mind." There hasn't been much structural change to the place since the post-Second World War period — and even then it was a comparatively minor addition, as then-president Harry Truman added a balcony to the second floor of the executive residence. Truman also gutted the interior after decades of neglect. Roosevelt knocked down pre-Civil War greenhouses to build the West Wing in 1902. His distant cousin, former president Franklin Roosevelt, added the Oval Office as it's known today in 1934. McBride, who also worked in the Reagan and H.W. Bush administrations, said it's the president's prerogative to do what he wants with the place — with some limits, of course. "The building has evolved over 233 years. It's been through changes before and with many of them there were strong feelings on both sides, but we ultimately adapted," she said. "It will take some getting used to." The ballroom project follows Trump's recent decision to pave over part of Jacqueline Kennedy's Rose Garden to install new tiles for an outdoor patio and put two towering flag poles on either side of the White House to boldly fly the Stars and Stripes. In a nod to his Trump Tower apartment, the president has placed gold detailing all over the Oval Office and other interior spaces in a building that was much more modest when it first opened in 1800. "The White House was built by our founding fathers, particularly George Washington, to not be like the palaces of Europe. But I'm not sure they could have envisioned the kind of world we live in today," McBride said. "It's the personal preference of this president. Maybe it's not to everybody's taste, but it is Trump's. While he's there, this is how he wants it." Crime crackdown, Kennedy Center takeover Beyond the White House gates, Trump is promising an ambitious campaign to fix the district's parks, roads and medians, because he said the current setup is "embarrassing" when world leaders come to see him. Bowser, the D.C. mayor, has pushed back on Trump's narrative, saying the city is already more beautiful and safe than it was — tourism numbers are up and business activity has improved after a post-COVID slump. But Trump described the city in dystopian terms as he moved to deploy the D.C. National Guard to the streets of the capital. His D.C. takeover doesn't stop there. Trump commandeered the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts's board of trustees, who then installed him as its chair. He dropped some purportedly progressive programming and promoted a summer schedule of the play Les Misérables, which just finished a five-week sold-out run on his watch. Now, Trump will personally host the centre's annual awards ceremony and give prizes to hand-picked celebrity recipients in a bid to drive up TV ratings. He is leading renovation efforts to that space, too, recently convincing Republicans in Congress to allocate $257 million for an overhaul. Some of his congressional allies are pushing for the building's opera house to be renamed after First Lady Melania Trump. And then there's the Smithsonian, which earlier this year removed a reference to Trump's first-term impeachments from a display in the Museum of American History — it later returned with a modified text. This week, White House officials urged the museum's top administrator to reevaluate what's put on display as the country approaches its 250th anniversary in 2026. The White House wants visitors to see displays that "celebrate American exceptionalism." "There is nothing traditional about the way Trump wants to get things done," McBride said. "He's getting things done his own way — the way he's used to."
