If there's one person whose political fortunes were damaged most by Tuesday's midterm elections and the "red wave" that wasn't, it's probably former Republican President Donald Trump.
With the exception of Ohio Republican JD Vance, nearly all the high-profile candidates carrying Trump's endorsement were either soundly defeated or are barely hanging on by a thread as ballots continue to be counted.
Even some high-profile Republicans have said publicly this week the Party needs to distance itself from the former President if it is to have a political path forward.
Given this context, comments made on Fox News yesterday by Trump's former right-hand woman Kellyanne Conway seem like they might have more to them than meets the eye.
Speaking to Fox's Martha MacCallum, Conway said she thinks Trump should hold-off on announcing his 2024 presidential run, which was expected to come right after the midterm elections.
Why? Though she stopped short of openly saying so, Conway seems awfully worried about the impact Trump could have on the upcoming Senate run-off in Georgia.
Namely him coming into the spotlight will make his hand-picked Republican candidate Hershel Walker lose to incumbent Democrat Raphael Warnock, like so many of his other candidates have this week.
Asked by MacCallum if she thinks Trump will still announce a run soon, Conway responded she thinks the former President should sit tight.
"My advice to Trump though would be to do what you've been doing all along, don't announce until after the midterms, and the midterms are not yet over."
"We have to go to this runoff. So... I would wait."
When MacCallum tried to clarify Conway's comments by seeming to imply Conway was nervous about Trump's announcement, Conway said:
"I would like him to finish what he and others started, which is get Herschel Walker into the United States Senate so that we have a majority there. And the midterms are not over yet, Martha. Let's let the midterms finish."
But wouldn't a presidential announcement be a motivator for right-wing voters and help Walker win?
Sure—if those right-wing voters actually like that candidate. But after Tuesday, it seems more and more clear the bloom may be off the rose where Trump is concerned.
If there was any doubt what exactly Conway was driving at, Democratic strategist and pollster Doug Schoen, who joined Conway on MacCallum's panel, gave it all away when he interjected to quip:
"We Democrats would like him to announce on November 15 as he said he would. That'd be just great!"
Conway then countered by reiterating she wants Trump to sit tight and stay in the shadows with a fast-talking urgency.
"I want him and other Republicans down in Georgia helping Herschel Walker win, and so we'll wait until the midterms are over. They're not over! As you know they may not be over this year!"
Everything okay, Kellyanne? You seem... honestly almost frantic!
On Twitter, plenty of people read between the lines of Conway's comments and loved to see the Republicans seem worried.
The run-off in Georgia, which takes place on December 6, may be the GOP's last chance at a Senate majority.
However still-pending Senate races in Nevada and especially Arizona appear to be going Democrats' way, which could dash Republican hopes long before Walker and Warnock face off again.
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