Trump Kicks Blake Masters to the Curb With ‘Complete and Total’ Endorsement of His Arizona Primary Rival
AP Photo/Matt York
Former President Donald Trump kicked Republican politician Blake Masters to the curb on Friday with a “complete and total endorsement” of Masters’ Arizona primary rival Abe Hamadeh.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump called on his supporters to back Hamadeh over Masters, whom he had previously endorsed in 2022:
Abe Hamadeh is a veteran, a former prosecutor and fearless fighter for our elections. He will be a true WARRIOR in Congress, and always put America First! As everyone knows, Abe fought for our Country overseas, and knows that the American people are demanding the kind of bold leadership that ushered in peace and prosperity just three years ago.
Abe Hamadeh is Strong on the Border, the Military/Vets, Crime, Cutting Taxes, Election Integrity, and Protecting our Great Second Amendment. He knows that if the flame of freedom is extinguished, it may never come back again.
These are the reasons why I am giving Abe Hamadeh my Complete and Total Endorsement in his quest to be the Congressman from District 8, representing the Great State of Arizona—He will never let you down!
Despite winning the primary, Masters lost the 2022 Senate election in Arizona to Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ).
In September, as Masters prepared to run again for office, he received the cold shoulder from several of his former allies, including Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) – who remarked, “I’ve got to focus on my own race” – and Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH), who told reporters, “I’ll make decisions about who I’m endorsing once candidates actually enter the race.”
Masters opted not to run again for the Senate in Arizona and instead endorsed Trump-favorite Kari Lake. After Masters announced he would be running for the House of Representatives, Lake repaid Masters by endorsing his primary rival Hamdeh, mere hours after Masters threw his hat into the ring.
In 2022, Masters was one of two candidates – the other being Vance – who were backed by Republican billionaire Peter Thiel, and Masters had been described in the media as Thiel’s protégé.
While Thiel was one of Trump’s most prominent donors in 2016, he recently experienced a change of heart.
In an interview last month, Thiel told the Atlantic that the Trump administration had failed to meet even his “low expectations” and revealed he would not be financially supporting any presidential candidate in 2024.
Thiel also revealed that Trump had recently called him to say “he was very sad” and “had expected way more” after Thiel refused to give him any more money.
“Months later, word got back to Thiel that Trump had called [Blake] Masters to discourage him from running for Senate again, and had called Thiel a ‘fucking scumbag,'” the Atlantic reported.
