Former President Donald Trump’s campaign dismisses reports that it’s shifting attention away from New Hampshire.
The Boston Globe reported that the Trump campaign cut ties with Tom Mountain, one of several Trump vice chairs in Massachusetts, after he emailed fellow volunteers informing them that “the campaign has determined that New Hampshire is no longer a battleground state.”
Mr. Mountain encouraged volunteers to invest their time and energy in Pennsylvania, a must-win state. He also wrote that “campaign data/research” showed Mr. Trump was poised to “lose by an even higher margin” in New Hampshire than in past elections.
But Trump senior adviser Brian Hughes scoffed at the idea, downplaying Mr. Mountain’s role in the campaign and the idea that New Hampshire was no longer a top Trump target.
“This isn’t true,” Mr. Hughes told The Boston Globe. “President Trump’s campaign maintains an on-the-ground presence in New Hampshire, including staff and offices, while Kamala Harris is parachuting in because she knows that the Granite State is in play.
“We look forward to building on the momentum that we have grown since the primary and sending New Hampshire’s four electoral votes to President Trump’s column on November 5.”
Ms. Harris has an event scheduled for Wednesday in the Portsmouth area, but the campaign has yet to share more details.
Mr. Trump is hoping the third time is the charm in the Granite State after losing it in the 2016 and 2020 elections and seeing his margin of defeat grow 7 points between the elections.
George W. Bush was the last Republican to carry New Hampshire in a presidential race, outpacing Democrat Al Gore there in 2000.
Mr. Trump and his allies have been bullish about expanding the map and putting Democrats on their heels in states such as New Hampshire, Minnesota and Virginia.
Yet according to polls, Ms. Harris is running stronger than President Biden against Mr. Trump in New Hampshire and Virginia.
She also bolstered her hand in Minnesota by tapping Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate.
In a post on Truth Social, Mr. Trump said Ms. Harris was visiting the state to stop the bleeding from Mr. Biden’s skipping the New Hampshire primary because of a beef over his desire to update the nomination calendar.
“Comrade Kamala Harris sees there are problems for her campaign in New Hampshire because of the fact that they disrespected it in their primary and never showed up,” Mr. Trump wrote. “Additionally, the cost of living in New Hampshire is through the roof, their energy bills are some of the highest in the country, and their housing market is the most unaffordable in history.”
Meanwhile, he pledged to defend the tradition of New Hampshire hosting the first primary in the nation.
“To my friends in New Hampshire, get out and vote TRUMP,” he wrote.
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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