Trump Goes After Another Potential 2024 Rival

First, Donald Trump went after Ron DeSantis. Now Trump is taking a swipe at another potential 2024 rival—Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin. The details:

• The statement: "Young Kin (now that's an interesting take. Sounds Chinese, doesn't it?) in Virginia couldn't have won without me," Trump wrote on Truth Social, per the Hill. "I Endorsed him, did a very big Trump Rally for him telephonically, got MAGA to Vote for him - or he couldn't have come close to winning. But he knows that, and admits it. Besides, having a hard time with the Dems in Virginia - But he'll get it done!"
• The context: Both DeSantis and Youngkin are seen as "ascendant figures in the GOP" and thus potential rivals for the 2024 nomination, per Politico. Trump is widely expected to launch his reelection campaign on Tuesday from his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, reports Axios. The latter site also notes that, despite Trump's boast, Youngkin won the governorship last year with a calculated strategy of keeping the former president "at an arm's length" to win over independents.

• Another factor: The Washington Post reports that another reason Trump may have called out Youngkin is that his lieutenant governor, Republican Winsome Earle-Sears, publicly blamed Trump for the GOP's underwhelming performance in the midterms. "A true leader knows when they have become a liability to the mission," she said in comments that angered Trump loyalists. Radio host John Fredericks, for example, even suggested that Youngkin encouraged her to criticize Trump, and he vowed political revenge against the governor. So did Youngkin know ahead of time what Earle-Sears was going to say? "I'm not going to say 'yes' and I'm not going to say 'no,'" she said. "I'm just going to leave it alone."
• Big picture: Maggie Haberman of the New York Times weighed in on Trump's current prospects with a series of tweets, notes Mediaite. A key point: Yes, "Trump is more vulnerable than he's been in a long time. But that has happened before and he's survived." And an ominous one for party leaders: "Trump has made clear he's willing to burn it all down if he doesn't get what he wants, which is maintaining his grip on the product line he's been developing for six years: the Republican Party. So a lot of electeds will have to make a choice [they've] not had to before."
• Final note: Sites including the Daily Beast see the Trump joke about Youngkin's name sounding Chinese as "racist." The governor hadn't responded as of early Friday afternoon.

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