Members of the Republican National Committee are set to consider a proposal that would enshrine Donald Trump as the party’s “presumptive nominee” for president, The Post confirmed Thursday.
The resolution was furnished by David Bossie, an RNC committeeman from Maryland former Trump 2016 deputy campaign manager, and comes as former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley continues to jockey with the 45th president for the party nod.
“Resolved, that the Republican National Committee hereby declares President Trump as our presumptive 2024 nominee for the office of President of the United States and from this moment forward moves into full general election mode welcoming supporters of all,” the resolution said.
Bossie’s pitch, first reported by The Dispatch, cited Trump’s victories in the Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary and argued that “money spent from this moment forward” would be more wisely used opposing President Biden.
Haley’s campaign was unimpressed with the pre-emptive maneuver.
“Who cares what the RNC says? We’ll let millions of Republican voters across the country decide who should be our party’s nominee, not a bunch of Washington insiders,” said campaign spokeswoman Olivia Perez-Cubas.
“If [RNC Chairwoman] Ronna McDaniel wants to be helpful she can organize a debate in South Carolina, unless she’s also worried that Trump can’t handle being on the stage for 90 minutes with Nikki Haley.”
RNC rules require candidates to lock down 1,215 delegates to become the party’s standard-bearer in a presidential election.
Trump won at least 20 of the 40 available delegates from Iowa following his near 30-point victory, and is set to pick up at least 12 of New Hampshire’s 21 delegates following his 11-point win in the Granite State, per the latest data.
Haley is set to gain eight delegates from her third-place finish in Iowa and nine in New Hampshire.
While McDaniel has stopped short of directly calling on Haley to exit the race, she told Fox News Tuesday night that she did not see how Haley could overcome Trump and win the nomination.
“I’m looking at the math and the path going forward, and I don’t see it for Nikki Haley,” she said at the time.
“There is a message that’s coming out from the voters, which is very clear,” she added. “We need to unite around our eventual nominee, which is going to be Donald Trump.”
Both the Trump campaign and the RNC declined to comment when asked about the resolution. Bossie did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The RNC could take up the resolution as soon as next week, when it convenes its winter meeting in Las Vegas.
Bossie is also the chairman and president of Citizens United, a conservative advocacy group.
