Fight for support from Donald Trump escalating in MS lieutenant governor GOP primary race

There is a battle going on within the Republican primary for Mississippi's lieutenant governor.

As the two candidates, incumbent Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann and longtime state Sen. Chris McDaniel, trade accusations that the other is not a true conservative, each seems to be courting former President Donald Trump, or at least building the appearance of his support through proximity to him.

Earlier this month, Hosemann held a fundraiser at the former president's Florida residence and private club, Mar-a-Lago. In a statement, Casey Phillips, a Hosemann campaign senior advisor, said Hosemann was invited to host an event at Mar-a-Lago in December. Trump was not in attendance, and neither were the members of the Mississippi Republican Congressional delegation, each of whom were officially on the event's host committee, according to an invitation obtained by the Clarion Ledger.

Still, an event at the former president's home brought out some of Trump's most ardent supporters. George Colella, of pro-Trump biker group Born to Ride for 45, spoke at the fundraiser, giving Hosemann his endorsement and taking photos with the lieutenant governor. In those photos, patches could be seen on Colella's vest prominently featuring the Confederate battle flag emblem and an altered version of the official Prisoner of War/Missing in Action Logo. It was changed to read "POW J6 2021," an apparent show of support to those prosecuted for participating in the Jan. 6, 2021, pro-Trump insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

"We, at Born to Ride for 45, are honored to endorse you as lieutenant governor for Mississippi," Colella said, while shaking hands with Hosemann, who could be heard thanking him.

Colella then presented Hosemann with a Born to Ride for 45 Donald J Trump t-shirt, and the two of them were later seen holding it up for a photo.

Hosemann has a complicated history with the former president. In 2017, when Hosemann was Mississippi's secretary of state, the Trump administration was asking states to provide it with detailed voter roll information, on the auspice of investigating purported voter fraud in the 2016 election. Hosemann said he would not hand the information over, citing privacy concerns for Mississippi voters.

"As all of you may remember, I fought in federal court to protect Mississippi voters' rights for their privacy and won," Hosemann said at the time. "In the event I were to receive correspondence from the commission requesting (what the other state received) ... My reply would be: They can go jump in the Gulf of Mexico and Mississippi is a great state to launch from."

The "jump in the Gulf of Mexico" comment continues to be a part of McDaniel's criticisms of the lieutenant governor.

Hosemann has never directly criticized Trump, though, and as the former president faced a historic indictment last month, Hosemann voiced his support.

"The New York prosecutors' convoluted theory to possibly charge President Trump is politically motivated and should be ended immediately. I join with Mississippians who care about the rule of law and any politicization of our justice system. It will surely threaten our country," Hosemann said via Twitter.

Spokespeople for the Hosemann campaign did not directly respond to questions about when their candidate had last spoken to Trump and if he is outright seeking an endorsement.

“Lt. Governor Hosemann supports President Trump because his policies created higher wages, a growing economy, new jobs, low inflation, and a more secure border," Phillips said in a statement. "We were happy to be invited to host a fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago back in December and it turned out to be a great event.”

On the other side, Nicole Tardif, a spokesperson for the McDaniel campaign, pointed to Trump's endorsement of McDaniel over Thad Cochran in the 2014 Senate race and a recent endorsement from the group Veterans for Trump, noting that McDaniel is the only candidate in this race to have once received a Trump endorsement.

"We'd welcome an endorsement from the President," Tardif said.

McDaniel himself has made no secret that he covets a potential Trump endorsement.

In an October appearance on the "Buck Naked Truth" podcast, McDaniel said he understands the power that such an endorsement brings. In the 2018 U.S. Senate Special Election, Trump endorsed Cindy Hyde-Smith over McDaniel, who would ultimately come in third place in the open primary, behind Hyde-Smith and Democrat Mike Espy.

"I would hope so," McDaniel said in October when the hosts asked if he thought Trump would endorse him over Hosemann. "I've seen what that endorsement can do. It's incredibly powerful … Oh my goodness gracious, it destroyed me."

McDaniel, who has aligned himself closely with Trump in recent years, has his own past statements about the former president to contend with. During a February 2016 town hall on Facebook, McDaniel was asked about the upcoming Republican presidential primaries.

"Trump is not a constitutional conservative," McDaniel said. "He's just not. I wish that were not the case because I like his ability to speak his mind. I like the idea that he can be strong, abrasive, particularly when he's speaking to powerful people in the establishment, but I don't hate the establishment more than I love conservatism. I want a conservative president, consistently, and he just hasn't been that guy, so it's unfortunate."

During the Trump presidency, McDaniel's views changed on Trump's conservative bona fides.

Both the McDaniel and Hosemann campaigns have lobbed accusations that the other is actually under the influence of Democrats.

Even before formally announcing his campaign, McDaniel accused Hosemann of not being conservative enough. In a statement after the legislative session, McDaniel said Hosemann stood in the way.

"Governor Reeves and Speaker Gunn both fought for conservative overhauls during legislative session that were met with nothing, but obstruction and leftist resistance from Lieutenant Governor Delbert ‘the Democrat,'" McDaniel said.

Hosemann, a lifelong Republican, has fended off such accusations and branded McDaniel as an ineffective legislator who regularly missed votes. In a Mississippi Today story about McDaniel's campaign finances, Phillips said, "Chris McDaniel’s campaign is based on a lie, staffed with Democrat operatives, and funded with illegal money."

Primary election day will be Aug. 8, with a potential runoff coming on Aug. 29.

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Delbert Hosemann and Chris McDaniel each courting Trump's support