Kellyanne Conway slighted GOP candidates endorsed by former President Donald Trump who are not dominating their Democratic opponents in what is likely to be a strong election year for Republicans.
Mrs. Conway, a former adviser to Mr. Trump, said the Republicans need to be less dependent on his endorsement and focus more on making campaign stops and talking with the press.
“Let me just say this about Trump candidates, and I’ve said this to [him] many, many times: They don’t do what he did. People get really lazy,” she told Washington reporters at a breakfast meeting Thursday hosted by the Christian Science Monitor. “You have to do the work. You don’t get Donald Trump’s endorsement and fall asleep and stop campaigning and not go do what he did, which is five stops a day, seven stops a day, eight stops a day, connect with the voters, give interviews to press.”
Her criticism came as polls and election forecasters say most of the GOP Senate candidates endorsed by Mr. Trump in critical races, such as in Arizona, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Georgia, face toss-up contests. The Trump-backed nominees have steadily gained ground on their Democratic opponents but remain locked in tight battles despite the unpopularity of President Biden’s party in a midterm election year.
Mrs. Conway refuted the notion that Mr. Trump’s endorsement is a drag on GOP candidates’ campaigns after his backing secured primary victories.
“Some of them are running against some really good Democratic candidates and some of them are not,” Mrs. Conway continued. “No one else can do it for you. Not your ad makers, not ex-presidents named Obama or Trump. You have to connect with voters.”
• Ramsey Touchberry can be reached at rtouchberry@washingtontimes.com.
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