'Deep squeamishness' in Georgia as Republican elected officials refuse to back Trump: report

Republican elected officials in Georgia are refusing to endorse Donald Trump in a “clear sign of deep squeamishness” over the former president, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

According to the AJC, “most of the state’s top Republican elected officials have yet to back” Trump’s third presidential run, “or — in rare cases — are siding with other GOP hopefuls they see as more formidable challengers to President Joe Biden.”

Dan McLagan, a veteran Republican strategist, compared a Trump endorsement to “asking a girl out right in front of your ex.”

“Endorsing now is dangerous,” McLagan said. “… The new girl may be flattered, but the ex might punch you in the nose with all your friends watching.”

To allies of Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, the reason for Trump’s lack of formal support in the state is clear. Kemp, who refused to embrace Trump’s claims of widespread voter fraud in 2020, still managed to “[wallop] Trump-backed challengers that the former president promoted to exact revenge,” the AJC reports.

Kemp, meanwhile, maintains that “not a single swing voter in a single swing state will vote for our nominee if they choose to talk about the 2020 election being stolen,” according to donors who attended a GOP retreat in April.

Rep. Rich McCormick (R-GA), who defeated Trump-backed Jake Evans in a runoff for the House of Representatives in May 2022, has “became the highest-profile Georgia official to support Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis” over Trump, AJC reports.

“Some people are disappointed,” McCormick said. “They love Trump. I get that — it’s OK. But we’re determining our own future. And one thing we realize about the Republican Party is we’re fiercely independent. We’re one body of many parts. And it’s OK to disagree. It doesn’t have to be an argument.”

“The people who are loving Trump — I get it,” McCormick added. “But I think they’ll come around.

Read the full report at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.