The Republican governor said that there will be “a number of alternatives” for the 2024 presidential election.
When asked whether he could potentially be one of those alternatives, Hutchinson responded “absolutely.”
“I am looking at it very seriously….I am encouraged that a governor who has actually solved problems, who has a conservative commonsense approach can draw support and can be a good alternative so I am encouraged by it, [and] probably looking at January for a decision point,” he said during an interview on CNN This Morning.
His remarks come after Trump officially announced on Tuesday that he will launch a campaign as part of the 2024 presidential election.
Hutchinson was asked on Thursday whether he is concerned about having a “crowded Republican primary field” that might benefit Trump the same way it did in 2016.
“I think this is different than 2016,” he responded, saying that “people understand who Donald Trump is today and his style.”
The Arkansas governor continued: “I don’t think there is going to be anything new in his approach and so you gotta be tough, you gotta be resilient, and you gotta stick with it in the long term, but I don’t believe it will be the same as 2016.
“We know the chaos that comes with him and that’s really not the kind of leadership that is good for America and really the future of our party.”
Meanwhile on Tuesday, Trump targeted President Joe Biden and Democrats during his presidential bid announcement at Mar-a-Lago, criticizing their leadership.
“Under our leadership, we were a great and glorious nation, something you haven’t heard for quite a long period of time,” Trump said to a crowd of supporters.
“Now we are a nation in decline,” he added. “We are a failing nation. For millions of Americans, the past two years under Joe Biden have been a time of pain, arching anxiety and despair.”
Trump said the Biden administration “destroyed the U.S. economy,” and he mentioned high inflation and gas prices over the past year. He also accused Biden of giving up U.S. energy independence and “begging” foreign countries for energy.
However, a number of obstacles are standing in Trump’s way to the White House, as he has been blamed by fellow Republicans for the GOP’s poor performance in the midterms.
The former president is also under a critical spotlight as he continues to face criminal and civil investigations, including for his alleged role in the January 6, 2021, attacks in which his supporters stormed the Capitol in an effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
He is also being investigated for keeping highly classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate that were seized by FBI agents in August.
Newsweek reached out to Trump’s media office for comment.
