I Hope Asa Hutchinson Will Endorse President Biden After White House Makes Amends For DNC Tweet

When former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson formally suspended his GOP presidential bid, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) put out a rather snarky tweet on X:

This news comes as a shock to those of us who could've sworn he had already dropped out.

While it is true that Hutchinson only appeared onstage for a single Republican debate and was lucky to poll at 2%, he had been as steadfastly anti-Trump as former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie was during his ill-fated campaign. Indeed, they were the only two Republicans on that debate stage who wouldn't raise their hand when asked if they would support Trump even if he had been convicted of a crime. Hutchinson was also booed vociferously at the Turning Point Action Conference last July when he objected to Trump's "stranglehold" on the GOP.

Under the circumstances, the DNC ought to have said something along these lines:

Although we do not share many of former Governor Hutchinson's views, we as Democrats appreciate his principled and steadfast opposition to defeated, former President Trump before and during his bid for the GOP nomination. 

Given that Trump will likely be the Republican nominee, we have no doubt that President Biden would welcome former Governor Hutchinson's support in the 2024 election as well as the support of other Republican voters alienated by the words and deeds of the former President. 

Instead, White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients personally called Hutchinson to apologize on behalf of President Biden. Fortunately, Hutchinson gracefully accepted Zients' apology:

He took his time away and he apologized. It meant a lot to me and to me that reflects the good parts of American politics. You fight hard, but at the end of the day you want to make sure you treat each other with respect. I appreciated the call.

Now that fences have been swiftly mended, I am wondering if there is a possibility Hutchinson will endorse President Biden and speak at the DNC. After all, Hutchinson has occasionally President Biden as he did for "seamless" vaccine distribution and "de-politicizing" our response to COVID.  That and Biden is on trial for anything despite James Comer's worst efforts. 

I can only hope DNC staff learn a valuable lesson from this episode. While there are plenty of legitimate reasons for the DNC to criticize Republicans and their policies, their attacks should be reserved for those whose devotion is to Trump rather than to the Constitution and our democracy. Those in the Republican Party who have the courage to speak out against Trump and Trumpism deserve the praise of the DNC, not its scorn.