Former president Donald Trump mocked Rep Nancy Mace at a rally in the Republican congresswoman’s home state of South Carolina for posting a video of herself in front of the former president’s Trump Tower property in New York.
Mr Trump held a rally in Florence on Saturday night and decried the Republican freshman congresswoman. Ms Mace worked on the Trump 2016 campaign before she won her seat in South Carolina’s 1st district in 2020, beating Rep Joe Cunningham.
But Ms Mace told CNN the day after the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol that “his entire legacy was wiped out yesterday”. While she voted against impeaching the former president, she did vote to hold former Trump administration adviser Steve Bannon in contempt of Congress.
In response, Mr Trump endorsed Katie Arrington, a Republican primary challenger. Mr Trump endorsed Ms Arrington in 2018, when she beat incumbent Rep Mark Sanford, a Trump critic. Ms Arrington later lost to Mr Cunningham that year. Mr Trump called Ms Mace “not at all representative of the Republican Party to which she is very disloyal” at the time.
Ms Mace posted a video of herself in front of Trump Tower, highlighting her early support for his 2016 run and working on his campaign.
But Mr Trump seemed none too pleased and mocked the video.
“She went to New York and stood in front of the magnificent Trump Tower – has anyone ever heard of Trump Tower – and did a commercial insinuating that I was endorsing her,” he said. “She’s standing over in front of Trump Tower in New York. I’m saying ‘can you believe this?’ It was untruthful just like everything else she does.”
Ms Arrington also made a speech before the former president took to the stage.
“I’ve been waiting a couple of weeks to see Big Daddy come home,” she said.
Mr Trump also blasted Rep Tom Rice, another South Carolina Republican who voted to impeach Mr Trump for his incitement of the insurrection. The former president endorsed state representative Russell Fry, a primary challenger in the state’s seventh district, who also spoke at the rally.
“Thankfully, this June, you have the chance to dump these grandstanding losers and replace them with rock solid America First champions,” she said.
But Mr Rice criticised Mr Trump in a statement, WBTW reported.
“Trump is here because, like no one else I’ve ever met, he is consumed by spite,” Mr Rice said. “I took one vote he didn’t like and now he’s chosen to support a yes man candidate who has and will bow to anything he says, no matter what.”
Similarly, Mr Rice criticised Mr Fry for his stances.
“If you want a Congressman who supports political violence in Ukraine or in the United States Capitol, who supports party over country, who supports a would-be tyrant over the Constitution, and who makes decisions based solely on re-election, then Russell Fry is your candidate,” he said.
“If you want a Congressman who cowers to no man, who votes for what is right, even when it’s hard, and who has fought like hell for the Grand Strand and Pee Dee, then I hope to earn your vote.”
