If no crazy drama unfolds, Donald Trump will become the de facto candidate of the Republican Party for the presidency of the United States on Wednesday morning (Israel time). Tomorrow (Tuesday) the primaries will be held in the state of New Hampshire. According to all the polls, Trump will win the first place there as well that they will no longer allow any other candidate to close the gap.
The announcement of the retirement of Ron de Santis from the Republican race
From Ron De Santis's X account
The candidate is, of course, Nikki Haley, the former ambassador to the United Nations, the favorite of the Israelis, the woman who "heels are my tools of the trade", who became the only one among the contestants who really challenges Trump. Haley receives close to 40 percent in New Hampshire, compared to more than 50 in them Trump is having fun. It's hard to believe that you will be able to close the gap in 48 hours, but if you lose, it will be with dignity. Unlike all the male contestants that Trump crushed, Haley - in a way that no one expected - arrived at "a match between two, head to head as we wanted from the beginning" - as which she has been announcing for several weeks.
By the way, gender plays a role here.
One of those men who were slapped by Trump is the governor of Florida, Ron de Santis, who last night (Sunday) withdrew from the race.
It seems that a female president is something that Americans still have a hard time coming to terms with.
The Democrats put a woman in their leadership only in 2016 - Hillary Clinton, of course - and she also lost.
It may be difficult for the conservatives, as they are, to do so in 2024 as well.
Nikki Haley, must win in New Hampshire, photo: AP
In any case, De Santis is undoubtedly the disappointment of the race.
Many estimated that he would be the one to get Trump into trouble.
On paper De Santis had every reason to do so.
He is charismatic, smart, leadership, with executive experience, conservative, values, former officer, challenging the left and the Deep State.
In short, everything the conservative voter likes, and without the trail of scandals that Trump drags with him.
But de Santis failed from the first moment.
He launched the campaign in the strange way of a Twitter conversation with Elon Musk.
The platform collapsed, and the hundreds of thousands did not hear the words of the two at all.
It was a metaphor for the entire election campaign.
The governor behaved rigidly and with excessive self-confidence.
He was not attentive to criticism and above all he did not show empathy and human warmth, which are so necessary in contact with American voters.
When I was sent this summer on behalf of Israel Hayom to interview him at the governor's office in Tallahassee, I could feel it firsthand.
The contents of the conversation with de Santis - I wish we had many more Israel supporters like him - were excellent.
He showed proficiency in the material, provided excellent headlines but also manipulated in such a way that it would not oblige him, for example, to act against Iran if elected president.
So it was politics at its best.
But what she didn't have was softness, warmth, and a willingness to listen.
It was evident that even his advisors were tiptoeing around him and not just as a metaphor - a phenomenon I have not seen in other staffs.
De Santis.
Left the stage to Trump, photo: Reuters
By the time De Santis realized that this toughness would cost him a loss, it was already too late.
He ditched his tie and suits, picked up babies in every county in Iowa and entered cooking contests.
The voters weren't buying it anymore.
Even in politics, there is no second chance for a first impression.
And so, after one of the most expensive primary campaigns ever, the most famous governor in America suspended the campaign and announced his support for Trump.
He may get a job in the next administration if Trump wins.
Some say he is building on the support of the former president in the 2028 elections. Time will tell.
Meanwhile, the one who will also enjoy the crumbs of the percentages he gained in New Hampshire, is Nick Haley.
According to a poll conducted before de Santis retired, about 40 percent of his voters prefer her to Trump.
So Haley will probably cross the 40 percent mark the day after tomorrow.
Definitely respectable.
However, Trump will probably earn more and therefore as mentioned, probably in two days, after only two countries, the actual contest will be decided.
Because although the next state is South Carolina, where Haley served as governor, but even there Trump leads.
Then Super Tuesday should come.
But unless Haley does the unbelievable in this week's battle, only force majeure or disaster will prevent Trump from winning.
On the way to a comeback?
Former President Trump, Photo: AP
This will be the third time he will run for the presidency, and not by chance.
I was at Trump's speech in Washington last summer and felt firsthand how he manages to give the audience everything that the other contenders give together.
A feeling that he is a kind of great father who was and will be there for them, who fights the daily war of survival like them, that forces greater than him and them stand in their way unfairly, who restores their faith in themselves, in the righteousness of the way and in the strength of America.
With this formula, Trump, according to polls, beats Joe Biden next fall.
He has about six months to plow through America to do this.
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