Donald Trump travels to South Carolina rally under pressure

Donald Trump will travel to South Carolina on Saturday for the first official rally of his 2024 campaign on what could be an important weekend for the former president.

Trump will first visit New Hampshire, a key state for early voting in the presidential primary, where he will speak at the state Republican Party’s annual convention in Salem.

The trip comes as Special Counsel Jack Smith continues his investigation into Trump’s handling of classified documents at his residence in Mar-a-Lago, Florida.

Smith, a career attorney, was hired by Attorney General Merrick Garland to consider whether charges should be filed. Trump has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and has criticized the Justice Department for an August 8, 2020 FBI search of the property.

Trump is also under political pressure as he runs for the White House for the third time, and a recent poll shows New Hampshire residents favor Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. A University of New Hampshire Survey Center study released Thursday showed Trump is 12 points behind the Republican governor.

DeSantis has not announced that he is running for president, but he is considered a potential rival for the GOP nomination. Former Vice President Mike Pence is also believed to be considering a run and has attended several events in recent months while distancing himself from Trump.

On Thursday, former national security adviser John Bolton told CBS News that Trump’s 2024 campaign “is going downhill and I think it’s going to keep going downhill.” He called the former president “poison” for the Republican Party.

“He cannot be elected president. If he were the Republican nominee, he would destroy our chances of a majority in the Senate and House of Representatives. I don’t think he will be the Republican nominee,” Bolton said.

Bolton also suggested he could launch his own presidential campaign to prevent Trump from being re-elected. Trump appeared to respond on Friday on his Truth Social platform, calling Bolton “one of the dumbest people in government.”

Ahead of his visits to New Hampshire and South Carolina, however, there appeared to be a bright spot for Trump: Ronna McDaniel secured re-election as Republican National Committee Chair on Friday.

McDaniel defeated challengers including MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell and California Republican Harmeet Dhillon, who had been supported by DeSantis.

Following her re-election, Trump wrote on Truth Social: “Congratulations to Ronna McDaniel on her huge WIN as RNC CHAIRMAN.

news week has reached out to former President Trump’s office for comment.