The strategist behind then-President Barack Obama’s successful 2012 reelection campaign has issued a dire warning to Democrats regarding the 2024 election, as reported on Monday. Jim Messina, in a purportedly confidential memo revealed by RadarOnline.com, cautioned that third-party candidates pose a significant threat to President Joe Biden and could potentially return former President Donald Trump to the White House.
Trump currently maintains a significant lead over his GOP rivals in most recent polls. Messina also predicted that the 2024 presidential race would likely boil down to a rematch between Biden and Trump, with third-party candidates potentially siphoning votes from Biden rather than Trump.
“I don’t care what they do. I don’t care how much money they spend. I don’t care who their nominee is. They’re going to get zero electoral votes. The question is who do they take the votes from?” said the secret memo from Messina to Politico.
“You just can’t split away votes if you want to beat Donald Trump,” he continued. “And I just cannot overstate how crucial it is to make sure that we don’t create a vehicle that takes enough votes up to elect Donald Trump.”
He also advised Democrats who are growing concerned about Biden’s health, age, and mental condition to “calm down,” as he believes the current president has a significant advantage for some unspecified reason.
“I thought it was important to say to my friends and clients and other people, let’s just take a step back and try to be really number-specific and really sort of who has what cards in their poker hand,” Messina explained. “And you would just rather be Joe Biden than Donald Trump.”
“Historically, we’re f—–g bedwetters,” he added. “We grew up in the ’80s and ’90s when Republicans won elections all the time. Democrats had their hearts deeply broken when Hillary lost and people didn’t see that coming. And so, you know, we continually believe every bad thing people say.”
He also advised Democrats and Biden to focus on three issues moving into the campaign cycle: The economy, abortion, and the fact that “the election is a choice, not a wish.”
“People thought we were crazy to go as early as we did with economic messaging,” he said regarding Obama’s economic focus ahead of the 2012 presidential election.
He also mentioned that the mere possibility of a nationwide abortion ban in the event of a significant Republican victory in the upcoming year would motivate Americans to vote for Democrats. As for the concerns about Biden, Messina predicted that they would diminish as the election draws nearer.
“It’s a choice between two parties, two ideologies, between two people,” Messina told Politico. “And that choice matters.”
“People didn’t see the Democratic turnout in 2022 coming,” he added.
Recently, Trump released a new video on his Truth Social platform that has garnered significant attention. In the video, Trump directly criticizes President Joe Biden for his perceived failed policies, claiming that they have diminished America’s global standing.
This video coincides with Trump’s appearance in a Manhattan court for a two-day trial on fraud charges. New York Attorney General Letitia James initiated an investigation into Trump and his family, alleging that Trump inflated the value of his assets.
During the first day of proceedings on Monday, Trump had strong words for the judge presiding over his civil trial in New York. He accused Judge Arthur Engoron of exhibiting bias, addressing reporters outside the courtroom during a break.
“This is a judge that should be disbarred. This is a judge that should be out of office. This is a judge that some people say could be charged criminally for what he’s doing. He’s interfering with an election. That is a disgrace,” Trump said.
