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Donald Trump says he might not endorse Mo Brooks in his U.S. Senate campaign after the Alabama representative told voters to put 2020 claims of voter fraud "behind you."
Brooks was one of the first federal legislators to support Trump's effort to overturn the 2020 election. But at an August 21, 2021, rally, Brooks told supporters: "There are some people who are despondent about the voter fraud and election theft in 2020. Folks, put that behind you. Put that behind you. Yes. Look forward, look forward, look forward. Beat them in 2022, beat them in 2024."
The crowd began to boo Brooks before he added, "All right, well, look back at it, but go forward and take advantage of it."
Oh boy. Mo Brooks suggested, in seriousness, that those in attendance should accept the results of the 2020 election and move on to the next one
— Ryan Phillips (@JournoRyan) August 22, 2021
… needless to say it did not go well and he nearly lost the crowd ? pic.twitter.com/1htgV3QAgm
After the rally, Brooks backpedaled, writing on Twitter, "The 2020 election was fraught with voter fraud & election theft on a massive scale. If only legal votes cast by eligible American citizens were counted, Trump won the election."
Nevertheless, seven months later, Trump expressed displeasure with Brooks' comment. "Mo Brooks is disappointing, Trump told The Washington Examiner in a Tuesday interview. "I'm determining right now, has Mo Brooks—has he changed?"
"I'm disappointed that he gave an inarticulate answer, and I'll have to find out what he means," Trump continued. "If it meant what he sounded like, I would have no problem changing [my endorsement] because when you endorse somebody, you endorse somebody based on principle. If he changed that principle, I would have no problem doing that."
Trump initially endorsed Brooks in April 2021, writing in a statement, "Few Republicans have as much COURAGE and FIGHT as Alabama Congressman Mo Brooks." Brooks' Twitter display name currently reads "Mo Brooks - Endorsed By President Trump."
A month after the 2020 presidential election, Brooks announced his plans to officially contest Congress' certification of then-President-elect Joe Biden's Electoral College victory.
"This election was stolen by the socialists engaging in extraordinary voter fraud and election theft measures," Brooks said, echoing similar claims made by Trump. Despite their claims, Trump's former attorney general, his head of U.S. cybersecurity, numerous statewide audits and over 60 court cases have all found no evidence that the 2020 election was stolen.
Trump's endorsement of Brooks is just one of the 118 endorsements Trump has made so far for candidates running the 2022 midterm elections, according to the political website Ballotpedia.
However, a 2021 analysis conducted by the nonprofit, independent news organization The Conversation showed that Trump's endorsements can generate "endorsement backlash." While Trump's endorsements help his preferred candidates immediately raise money, they also help the candidates' opponents raise money and mobilize their supporters to vote.
A recent poll of 500 Alabama voters who plan on casting votes in the upcoming Republican primary placed Brooks last at 17.6 percent when compared to his two main Republican opponents. Katie Britt received the support of 33.8 percent of respondents and Mike Durant received the support of 32 percent of respondents, Alabama news station WHNT reported.
"The only polls showing Katie Britt ahead of Mo Brooks are paid for by her campaign or special interest groups endorsing her," Brooks' campaign said in a statement, noting that the poll was conducted by ForestPAC, the political arm of the Alabama Forestry Association (AFA). The AFA endorsed Britt.
Newsweek contacted Brooks' and Trump's offices for comment.
