Political dynasties are nothing new in politics. There was John Adams and his son, John Quincy Adams. Teddy Roosevelt and his cousin, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. George H.W Bush and George W. Bush. And, of course, the various members of the Kennedy clan who have held public office.
Could the Trump family be next?
In the wake of Sen. Richard Burr’s vote on Saturday to impeach President Trump, the answer may just be “yes.” Burr, luckily, isn’t running for reelection in 2022, leaving an open seat in North Carolina — a seat that is crucial for Republicans to hold if they want to regain their majority status in the Senate.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) told Fox News that he thinks Lara Trump, Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law, was the biggest winner following the Senate’s vote to acquit the former president:
“My dear friend Richard Burr, who I like and have been friends with for a long time, just made Lara Trump almost the certain nominee for the Senate seat in North Carolina to replace him if she runs, and I’ll certainly be behind her because she represents the future of the Republican Party,” he said.
Lara Trump was born and raised in North Carolina; she spent a lot of time serving as a Trump surrogate there during the 2016 and 2020 campaigns. She has reportedly been considering a Senate run for several months, and the treatment of her father-in-law at the hands of both the Democrats and Republicans may just be the push she needs to make it official.
A December poll showed Lara Trump leading the field of potential Republican candidates, including former governor Pat McCrory and Congressman Mark Walker, who currently represents NC’s sixth congressional district. The poll also showed that Donald Trump was the overwhelming favorite amongst state Republicans to be the presidential candidate in 2024, leading runner-up Nikki Haley by seventy point.
Then there’s this: Lindsey Graham also called out Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell for his post-acquittal comments about President Trump, saying McConnell “put a load on the back of Republicans.” McConnell said Trump had committed “a disgraceful dereliction of duty” following the January 6th chaos on Capitol Hill. Comments like this are not likely to go over well with Republican voters in North Carolina.
And likely not with Lara Trump, either.
Will Mitch McConnell’s comments be enough to push a Lara Trump candidacy into motion? If she is serious about running, there certainly doesn’t seem like a better time than now and a better state than North Carolina. And, as former Trump advisor Kellyanne Conway told The New York Times last year: “[Lara} would be formidable. She has the trifecta: She can raise money, raise awareness of key issues, and raise attention to her race. Unlike many typical politicians, she connects with people and is a compelling messenger.”
Teri Christoph is editor of Fierce, a weekly newsletter about conservative women and politics.
