A campaign manager for former President Donald Trump warned Representative Bob Good (VA-05) “won’t be electable” after the Virginia Republican broke with Trump and endorsed Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in the 2024 GOP presidential primary.
Chris LaCivita, who advised the former president’s campaign before his recent promotion to co-campaign manager, told Cardinal News on Wednesday, “Bob Good won’t be electable when we get done with him.”
LaCivita made the remarks after Good’s primary challenger, State Senator John McGuire (R-Goochland), traveled to Iowa to support the former president ahead of his 30-point victory in the state’s caucuses.
In a statement posted to social media, McGuire congratulated Trump on his Iowa victory and said he is “doing everything” he can to see Trump reelected in November.
McGuire then turned his attention to Good, who he said “is working against and disparaging Donald Trump, which is very dangerous for the future of America.” Noting that DeSantis is “Never Trumper Bob Good’s favorite candidate,” he called for the Florida governor to “drop out, along with the other Republicans still in the race.”
“Stop helping the Democrats,” McGuire urged, “let’s get Trump back in the White House so he can Save America.”
In a post to X, formerly Twitter, McGuire again congratulated Trump on his Iowa victory and wrote that “Bob Good has been working against Trump [and] badmouthing him for almost a year.” The Virginia lawmaker added, “America wins when Bob Good, who partners with Democrats, loses!”
Trump won Iowa with a record 51% landslide! My opponent Bob Good has been working against Trump & bad mouthing him for almost a year. It didn’t work & I’m glad I was able fly to Iowa & join #MAGA patriots to GOTV. America wins when Bob Good, who partners with Democrats, loses! pic.twitter.com/EZEs2uMDPY
— John McGuire (@JohnMcGuire4VA) January 16, 2024
In remarks to Cardinal News, Good said he “would enthusiastically support President Trump if he was the nominee again,” but stressed that he endorsed DeSantis “because I believed, as I do now, that we need eight years of conservative leadership” and “the job he did in Florida is the model for the country.”
The Trump campaign statement indicating Good’s political career is in jeopardy comes after the December publication of edited, undercover footage in which Good declared that Trump was the only Republican candidate capable of losing to President Joe Biden, questioned the former president’s credentials as a conservative and insisted that he would not make such remarks publicly.
A conservative political action committee recently used Good’s remarks to release an ad campaign declaring Good is “no good.”
A poll of voters in Virginia’s 5th Congressional District released by McGuire’s campaign in December 2023 showed Good with a comfortable lead over his primary rival, but the voters’ opinions on the men changed drastically after voters heard “a series of messaging statements both outlining Good’s vulnerabilities and outlining McGuire’s accomplishments and achievements,” with 64 percent supporting McGuire compared to just 15 percent supporting Good.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Georgia Star News, The Virginia Star, and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Bob Good” by Bob Good.
