Donald Trump is testing a strategy that may soon become a necessity as his legal woes mount: relying on Republican surrogates to make his case to voters.
Polls show Trump as the front-runner for the 2024 Republican nomination, but he’s mired in four criminal cases that could take him off the campaign trail starting in late January or February when candidates traditionally make their closing arguments to voters. That means Trump, the most popular figure in the Republican party, may well have to rely on the star power of key stand-ins to make final pitches to voters.
While the candidate himself was a no-show at prominent events, including the first Republican primary debate and several time-honored events in Iowa, he left loyalists to fill the void.