Donald Trump continued his attack on fellow GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy on Monday, saying a vote for him is wasted ahead of the Iowa caucuses.
Ramaswamy has been a loyal supporter of Trump, but said he is running against him in 2024 because the deep state won’t allow Trump to be the Republican nominee, and is promoting himself as the alternative.
He is also telling voters in Iowa to caucus for him to “save Trump.”
In a post on his Truth Social app Monday, hours before the Iowa caucuses, Trump told his supporters not to waste their vote on Ramaswamy.
“A VOTE FOR VIVEK IS A WASTED VOTE,” Trump wrote. “I LIKE VIVEK, BUT HE PLAYED IT TOO “CUTE” WITH US. CAUCUS TONIGHT, VOTE FOR DONALD J. TRUMP, BUILD UP THE NUMBERS!!! IN NOVEMBER, WE MUST TAKE OUR VERY TROUBLED NATION — A NATION IN DECLINE — BACK FROM CROOKED JOE BIDEN AND THE RADICAL LEFT DEMOCRATS AND THUGS WHO ARE DESTROYING IT. MAGA!!!”
This follows a post on Sunday where Trump attacked Ramaswamy for the first time, warning his supporters to not get ‘duped’ by him because “Vivek is not MAGA.”
Ramaswamy responded to Trump in a post on X/Twitter, saying he does not believe “friendly fire” is helpful.
“Donald Trump was the greatest President of the 21st century, and I’m not going to criticize him in response to this late attack,” he said.
“I’ve met tens of thousands of Iowans across 390+ events here, and they are deeply worried – and so am I – that this “system” won’t allow Donald J. Trump anywhere near the White House again. It seems they will stop at *nothing* to keep him away from power,” Ramaswamy added. “I’m worried for Trump. I’m worried for our country. I’ve stood up against the persecutions against Trump, and I’ve defended him at every step.”
The last poll released before the Iowa caucuses shows Trump with a commanding lead over the rest of the GOP primary field, with 48% of likely Republican caucusgoers choosing him as their first-choice, followed by former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley at 20% support, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis at 16% and Ramaswamy at 8%.
However, with subzero temperatures in Iowa on caucus day expecting to significantly affect turnout, there could be an upset. Trump’s attacks on Ramaswamy may be him trying to avoid an surprise outcome by preventing Ramaswamy from pulling any support away from his campaign.
