Top House GOP campaigner urges candidates to ’embrace’ Trump

The leader of the House GOP campaign arm is urging his colleagues to “embrace” former President Trump, which he contends is a winning strategy across all districts. 

Rep. Richard Hudson (R-N.C.) is encouraging his conference colleagues to support Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee in 2024, in his push to regain the Oval Office and welcome his presence in their races. 

“I was one of the first people that endorsed Trump this cycle, and I’m proud to run with him. I think he’s a net positive everywhere for us,” Hudson told Politico Thursday during the House GOP’s retreat in West Virginia. “So if somebody asked, I tell them, ‘embrace him, he’s our nominee.’ I mean, he’s wildly popular everywhere right now. He’s winning every battleground state.” 

His comments were geared towards House Republicans running for reelection in battleground districts who are not certain how to contend with Trump’s presence in their district.  

Hudson, the House Republican Congressional Committee chair, expressed confidence that the Republican Party will be able to retain its majority in the lower chamber. 

The North Carolina lawmaker is eyeing four competitive seats that he thinks the GOP can flip in 2024 that are currently represented by Democrats, according to Punchbowl News. 

Hudson listed Michigan’s 7th District represented by Reps. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Congressman Dan Kildee’s (D-Mich.) 8th District, California’s 47th District represented by Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.) and Virginia’s 7th District repped by Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.), all posts held by lawmakers leaving the lower chamber. 

He added one of the keys will be the way GOP lawmakers talk about abortion. Hudson said it is paramount for candidates to share their position on the issue and not let the Democratic opposition define it for them. 

“Last cycle, Democrats spent over $500 million telling voters what their voting position was,” Hudson said, according to Politico. “And Republicans kept quiet on it, and looking back on that — that was a big mistake.”