Washington, Jan 3 (IANS) With less than a fortnight to go for the Iowa caucus and New Hampshire meets, top Republicans have come out in the open endorsing former President Donald Trump for President in the 2024 White House race leaving Republican voters to make the final choice at the caucuses and ending uncertainty even as Trump is beleaguered with legal cases.
Republican House Whip Tom Emmer announced on Wednesday that he is backing former President Donald Trump in his latest bid for the White House.
With Emmer's announcement on X, all of the Republican House leaders have now backed Trump's re-election campaign, media reports said.
"Democrats have made clear they will use every tool in their arsenal to try and keep Joe Biden and his failed policies in power. We cannot let them. It is time for Republicans to unite behind our party's clear frontrunner, which is why I am proud to endorse Donald J. Trump for President," Emmer posted on 'X'.
Emmer's announcement comes after House Majority Leader Steve Scalise endorsed Trump on Tuesday and less than two weeks before the Iowa caucuses kick off voting in the Republican presidential primary.
"I am proud to endorse Donald Trump for president in 2024, and I look forward to working with President Trump and a Republican House and Senate to fight for those families who are struggling under the weight of Biden’s failed policies," Scalise posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Trump thanked Scalise saying it was a "great honor" to have his endorsement.
"I will not let you, or our Country, down!” Trump wrote.on his social media website Truth Social.
Trump as of today is the frontrunner in the Republican presidential primary field by around 40 percentage points in nationwide polling, according to the latest update to the CNN Poll of Polls, ahead of his chief rivals Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley.
Trump's overwhelming lead comes in the face of his defending multiple criminal trials and 91 charges of felony in four separate cases.
The former president has been hard put to adjusting his campaign dates in early voting states while fulfilling his legal obligations as a defendant.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
In the meantime, Presidential hopeful Nikki Haley's campaign announced $24 million haul in 4th quarter: Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley's presidential campaign said on Wednesday it raised the sum in the fourth quarter of 2023 across her political operation, thus doubling more than any other previous quarter last year.
That's up from around $11 million in the third quarter and $7.3 million in the second quarter, as she saw fresh interest from donors searching for a Trump alternative, media reports said.
Nikki Haley's upsurge reflects a new momentum following the first four GOP primary debates and an uptick in deep-pocketed donors coalescing behind her White House bid. They include co-founder of Home Depot Ken Langone and billionaire LinkedIn co-founder and Democratic donor Reid Hoffman.
In November, Haley was also endorsed by Americans for Prosperity Action, a network associated with billionaire Charles Koch. They campaign door to door across the US.
The former UN ambassador's campaign said she attracted more than 83,000 new donors in the fourth quarter alone -- nearly the combined total of her unique donors in the previous quarters combined, CNN reported.
Haley is the first major GOP presidential contender to release her fourth quarter numbers.
The candidates have until January 31 to file their quarterly campaign finance reports with the Federal Election Commission.
