Former Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel on Sunday suggested that her ouster as party boss stemmed from Donald Trump’s irritation at her push for debates in the 2024 nomination process.
Former Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel on Sunday suggested that her ouster as party boss stemmed from Donald Trump’s irritation at her push for debates in the 2024 nomination process.
McDaniel stepped down as RNC chair earlier this month amid a Trump-backed leadership shakeup that saw her replaced by Michael Whatley, while Trump campaign senior adviser Chris LaCivita became COO and Lara Trump ascended to party co-chair.
“There’s no question that as RNC chair you have to remain neutral and we had a primary process. So we did have debates,” McDaniel told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday. “There was tension and a little friction that started during that process.”
Trump, now the presumptive nominee who is also facing a slew of federal felony charges, skipped all of the 2024 GOP debates.
“I knew at that point when I was doing that role, and we were going to have debates that when the nominee came forward and it was likely to be President Trump that they would want to switch,” McDaniel added.
She defended the move by juxtaposing the GOP with Democrats who eschewed debates and now have to contend with environmental lawyer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. running as an Independent.
McDaniel recently inked a contributor deal with NBC, prompting a wave of backlash at the company, particularly at sister network MSNBC. Moderator Kristen Welker grilled her on Sunday against that backdrop.
Trump, 77, met with McDaniel before endorsing a replacement. He had initially backed her to take over the party apparatus after he won the presidency in 2016.
