Trump touts potential Lewandowski Senate bid ahead of New Hampshire rally

President Donald Trump on Thursday morning retweeted a pair of posts from his former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski ahead of an evening rally in New Hampshire — where state Republicans fear Trump will promote a potential Senate run by his divisive ex-aide.

The first

Twitter

getElementsByTagName(s)[0],p=/^http:/.test(d.location)?'http':'https';if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=p+"://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs"); shared a story by The Washington Times reporting that Lewandowski will accompany the president to the “Keep America Great Rally” in Manchester. “Can’t wait for ⁦@realDonaldTrump⁩ to come back to NH to deliver his message of America First!” Lewandowski wrote in the message.

The second

Twitter

shared a story by the alt-right publication Breitbart News reporting the results of survey showing Lewandowski leading the field of Republican challengers looking to unseat Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.). POLITICO first reported on the poll, commissioned by Lewandowski confidante and Citizens United President David Bossie.

The president’s retweets will do little to calm the nerves of GOP officials and operatives in New Hampshire who are adamantly opposed to a Senate campaign by Lewandowski. New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, former New Hampshire Attorney General Tom Rath, former Sen.

Judd Gregg and strategist Dave Carney have all voiced concerns about such a bid.

Lewandowski, an outspoken defender of the president known for his pugilistic personal style, has a history of controversial statements and behavior.

He forcefully grabbed then-Breitbart News reporter Michelle Fields as she attempted to ask Trump a question following a press conference in March 2016, was involved in a bitter property dispute with neighbors that began in 2017, and remarked “womp womp” in relation to a 10-year-old girl with Down syndrome separated from her parents by a Trump administration policy during a June 2018 appearance on Fox News.

Lewandowski was fired as Trump’s campaign manager in June 2016 after leading the real estate mogul and reality television star to victory in a packed Republican presidential primary, and was replaced by Kellyane Conway in August 2016.

Article originally published on POLITICO Magazine