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Donald Trump has hit out at Virginia Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin and Lieutenant Governor Winsome Sears as the former president defends himself amid backlash over the midterm results.
While sharing a Newsweek article on Truth Social about how a number of MAGA Republicans criticized Sears after she publicly denounced Trump following the GOP's poor midterm performance, Trump attacked her as a "phony," while renewing his attacks on Youngkin.
Trump had endorsed Youngkin in the 2021 gubernatorial election against Democratic governor Terry McAuliffe, but Youngkin appeared not to embrace fully the former president's backing or support his MAGA agenda to appeal to independent and moderate voters.
Sears, who traveled across the country to support Trump in his 2020 presidential campaign, has now denounced the former president as a "liability" following the midterms. The elections have seen the GOP fail to take control of the Senate and still not gain a majority in the House as expected, nearly one week after the polls opened.
"Never felt good about Winsome Sears. Always thought she was a phony. Now I find out she is," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
"When I helped Youngkin with his race, Endorsed him, and made a Statewide TeleRally with hundreds of thousands of people on the call, he wrote me a very nice letter thanking me for the help, and then went on to say, 'How to win without Trump.' MAGA showed up big, but wasn't appreciated. Sorry, Winsome, and Glenn, but we can't let that happen!"
The article Trump shared on social media reported the backlash Sears faced after she criticized him during an interview with Fox News on November 10.
"The voters have spoken and they have said that they want a different leader," Sears said. "And a true leader understands, when they have become a liability, a true leader understands that it's time to step off the stage. And the voters have given us that very clear message."
Sears noted how a number of Trump-endorsed candidates had "totally underperformed" in races across the country, costing the GOP the apparent red wave that was widely predicted.
"We have a clear mission, and it is time to move on," she added.
Conservative political consultant Alex Bruesewitz was one of those to criticize Sears for the condemnation of the former president.
"If you're not paying attention, the swamp is running a coordinated campaign, pushing dishonest talking points about Donald Trump," he tweeted.
"Winsome Sears, who was propped up by the MAGA movement, is the latest to get gobbled up. 2015/2016 anti-Trump energy is back. They won't succeed," Bruesewitz added.
This is not the first time Trump has gone after Youngkin in the wake of the midterm results.
In a November 11 post on Truth Social, Trump described how Youngkin "couldn't have won without me" in 2021, while also saying the Virginia governor's name "Sounds Chinese."
"I Endorsed him, did a very big Trump Rally for him telephonically, got MAGA to Vote for him—or he couldn't have come close to winning. But he knows that, and admits it. Besides, having a hard time with the Dems in Virginia—But he'll get it done," Trump added.
Newsweek has contacted Youngkin and Sears for comment.
About the writer
Ewan Palmer is a Newsweek News Reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on US politics, and Florida ... Read more