Categories
Politics Politics Beat Blog

Corker Slams Stop-Trump Effort With Blistering Rebuke

Senator hits GOP leaders’ attempt to “stifle” the voice of “the American people [who] should be angrier than they are” at “the fecklessness and ineptness of the Washington establishment.”

Even as prominent Republicans are rushing to enlist in a collective effort to derail Donald Trump’s presidential nomination after Super Tuesday, one party eminence has JB

Senator Corker

 harshly rebuked the perpetrators of that accelerating effort.

This is Tennessee Senator Bob Corker, who is thereby breaking ranks with other statewide GOP luminaries, like his Senate colleague Lamar Alexander and Governor Bill Haslam, both of whom have endorsed Marco Rubio, the consensus choice so far of Republicans in the Stop-Trump movement.

And it probably no accident that the Senator took a public stand in the immediate wake of a severely critical and well-publicized critique of Trump’s candidacy earlier Thursday by 2012 Republican president nominee Mitt Romney.

Here, in its entirety, is the text of the terse statement released Thursday afternoon by Tara DiJulio, a spokesperson for Corker;


Corker Statement on the 2016 Presidential Election

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) issued the following statement today regarding the 2016 presidential election:

“Here’s my message to the Republican Party leaders: Focus more on listening to the American people and less on trying to stifle their voice.

“What’s happening in the Republican primary is the result of two things: the fecklessness and ineptness of the Washington establishment in failing to address the big issues facing our country and years of anger with the overreach of the Obama administration. And to be candid, I think the American people should be angrier than they are.”

Senator Corker has not endorsed a candidate in this election.

In case that last statement in the release might be overlooked, spokesperson DiJulio had preceded the release with this admonition: “NOTE: This is not an endorsement of any candidate. Senator Corker does not intend to endorse in this election.”

What makes the Corker statement even more noteworthy is the fact that, while in Memphis two weekends ago as the keynote speaker of the Shelby County Republican Lincoln Day dinner, Corker had hinted he might take a position on who the nominee might be.

From the Flyer’s coverage of Corker’s remarks at the time:

Corker said the ideal candidate would have to demonstrate prowess in three specific ways: a determination to deal with fiscal issues, a plan for dealing with “a growing wealth gap” between rich and poor, and an ability “to lead the world.”

Currently, Corker, who has a well-deserved reputation for speaking his mind independently, is chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and an influential member of the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.