Former President Donald Trump wants his political team to start preparing for a 2024 run to win a second term “denied him,” according to former staff chief and current top adviser Mark Meadows.
In his new book out today, The Chief’s Chief, Meadows said that Trump’s call came after the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan, which the former president blamed on his successor, President Joe Biden, and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley.
“During our conversation, President Trump said the words that I had been waiting to hear for seven months. ‘We have to be ready,’ he said. ‘We have to do it again for the sake of our great country,’” wrote Meadows in the book that was provided to Secrets.
He added, “Clearly, the time for ‘hanging around’ was over. When President Trump said we had to ‘do it again,’ he was not simply stating some abstract idea. The message was clear: We had to prepare for the second term that had been denied him. We needed four more years. That’s four more years to reverse the damage that Biden had managed to inflict on our country in just seven short months; four more years to truly drain the swamp; four more years to remind America that our country is truly great, no matter what anyone on the left has to say about it.”
Meadows and other former Trump aides have been signaling another White House bid for months, and Trump has also been teasing it.
Meadows_ChiefsChief_JKT_FINAL (1).jpegThe expectations are that if Trump decides to jump in, he will do it after the 2022 midterm congressional elections. He is already heavily involved in those campaigns with endorsements and fundraising.
Recent polls show Trump leading the GOP primary and also beating Biden. Meadows predicted “Draft Trump” efforts and even discussion over a vice presidential pick.
In his book, which has made headlines over Trump’s coronavirus case, Meadows indicated that he is working to build up a new Trump campaign staff and a plan to move quicker in a second term to put key personnel in office.
“During our frequent phone calls, he often tells me that he wishes he knew then what we know now, namely that when you’re running the White House, personnel is key. He says that he wishes he could go back and root out all the political appointees who worked privately to undermine his agenda. We can’t do that. But we can make sure that we don’t make the same mistake the second time around,” wrote Meadows.
Donald Trump, Mark Meadows“When I hung up the phone that night, I had an assignment. Find people for his second four years who will fully support the America First Agenda: people who will not quietly try to sabotage that agenda, who are not afraid to fight against China and support American workers and their families, who want to secure borders and safe communities, who are willing to support a strong military, who will focus on our greatness and not our flaws, who will stand for our flag and support our law enforcement, who will stop the march of socialism and cancel culture. In short, I was given the task of finding secretaries and undersecretaries who wouldn’t undercut the president,” he added.
Meadows concluded his 308-page book by writing this:
“I’m sure that in the months to come, there will be ‘Draft Trump’ movements, large rallies, and boat parades that would make the naval fleets of some countries seem small by comparison. There will be lots of chatter about President Trump’s running mate, and about what he will do when he is once again back in the Oval Office. And I have no doubt that the efforts will all reach the same conclusion. It’s time for more historic accomplishments, and … Four more years.”
