President Donald Trump reacts as he speaks to members of the media on board Air Force One en route from Scotland to Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, July 29, 2025. REUTERS Evelyn Hockstein
President Donald Trump is trying to "get creative to avoid embarrassment" after one of his much-prized endorsements went down in flames in a key swing state, per a new analysis from MS NOW.
Trump built up a notable win-streak of 2026 midterm endorsements in recent weeks, costing numerous state and federal lawmakers their reelection bids in retaliation for standing up to him. However, as the weeks have gone by, his endorsements have proven to be far from bulletproof, most recently when the Trump-backed Georgia Lt. Gov. Burt Jones lost his gubernatorial bid to businessman and healthcare executive Rick Jackson, sending him into the general election to face Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms in the crucial battleground state.
Despite Trump's endorsement, Jones ended up five points behind Jackson when all was said and done. In a Wednesday breakdown, longtime MS NOW producer Steve Benen noted that Trump takes "a great deal of pride in the power of endorsement and his professed ability to singlehandedly choose election winners, especially in Republican primaries," and in the face of this failure and others, he has taken to giving three typical responses to try and defend his record.
"Option #1: Blame others," Benen wrote. "When [Rep.] Feenstra lost in [the Iowa gubernatorial race], for example, the president said he had not been 'given the proper information.' He didn’t elaborate as to who exactly had failed him, but the point was obvious: We’re not supposed to blame Trump for the fact that GOP primary voters ignored his choice."
He added later, "Option #2: Pretend he didn’t endorse the candidate he endorsed. In February, Democrats flipped a state Senate seat in Texas, defeating a Trump-backed candidate. Asked about the outcome, the president told reporters, 'I didn’t hear about it. Somebody ran where?' Reminded of the relevant details, Trump added, 'I’m not involved with that.' He had publicly endorsed the GOP candidate several times, including literally one day earlier."
Finally, Benen explained, in the absence of those options, Trump will instead try to twist reality and pretend that his failed endorsement was actually a success, a tactic he tried with Jackson's win in Georgia.
"Option #3: Pretend his failure was actually a success," he continued. "After Jackson defeated Jones in the Georgia race, the president published an item to his social media platform that read, 'Congratulations to Rick Jackson, who very successfully campaigned on being ‘TRUMP,’ and won. He will be your next Governor of Georgia. Can’t wait!' About an hour later, the president added another online item that read in part, 'Rick Jackson ran a great TRUMP Campaign. Very smart! Was with me on Saturday Night making a pitch. Amazing!!!'"
He concluded: "That is, the president wants the public to believe this doesn’t go in his L column, despite the inconvenient fact that the Republican primary voters nominated the candidate who didn’t receive his endorsement."
