SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A few months ago, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox was one of the few prominent Republicans to consistently distance himself from Donald Trump, whose brash style seemed at odds with the policies Cox had carefully cultivated. focuses on unity and respect.
Cox did not vote for Trump in 2016 or 2020, and told CNN in July that he would not vote for Trump this year. The governor said the then-president’s role in inciting the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol went too far.
Days later, after an assassination attempt on Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania, Cox changed his mind.
Cox sent a letter to Trump explaining that his defiant response at the time of the firing had prompted the sudden reconsideration and replacement of Cox.
His turn baffled political observers, who for the past decade have watched Cox systematically create a persona as a moderate along the lines of Mitt Romney, the Utah senator who was the Republican presidential nominee in 2012, as he rose through the state’s leadership ranks.
Cox, 49, said in the memo that he believes Trump can save the country by “emphasizing unity over hatred.”
“You probably don’t like me much,” Cox wrote. “But I want you to know that I promise my support.”
Trump, for his part, has not endorsed Cox for re-election.
The couple’s tumultuous relationship was thrust into the spotlight again last week when they put themselves at the center of a controversy at Arlington National Cemetery. After Trump’s staff had a dispute with a cemetery official, Cox broke the rules — and likely federal law — by using a photo of himself at the grave with Trump in a campaign fundraising message.
Federal law prohibits campaign or election-related activity at military national cemeteries, and Arlington officials said the rule had been widely shared before Monday’s ceremony honoring 13 soldiers, including one from Utah, who died in an airport bombing during the withdrawal from Afghanistan. years ago.
Cox’s campaign issued a quick apology for politicizing the ceremony; Trump’s has insisted that it had permission to film in a restricted area. A TikTok video shared by Trump of the visit includes scenes of him and Cox at a cemetery, with the former president blaming the Biden administration for the “disaster” of the retreat.
The contrasting responses highlight the difference in their political styles and reignite questions about why Cox has chosen to defend Trump, who said after the assassination attempt that he had no plans to change his ways.
“I’m sure he was there to support the Utah family, and that’s a laudable goal, but by being there with Donald Trump, he was drawn into something that creates ethical challenges,” said political science professor Chris Karpowitz. Brigham Young University. “He allowed himself to compromise his values, and he is not the first politician who identifies with Donald Trump to find himself in such a position.”
Cox’s sudden embrace of being up for re-election in a race not expected to be close does not sit well with some of the Utah moderates he had worked to win over.
Orem’s Kyle Douglas said he lost confidence in Cox after the governor decided to endorse a presidential candidate who does not share his values.
“I used to be proud that my governor was still one of the good guys,” Douglas said. “It’s so disappointing to see him sell out.”
Provo’s Lucy Wright expressed her disgust more bluntly.
“Trump is a big orange stain on his legacy,” he said.
Karpowitz also said he was surprised by Cox’s change, recalling that he thought the governor’s notion that Trump could be a unifying figure for the nation was “somewhat naive.” Like many in Utah, the professor said he found it difficult to understand why Cox might think that endorsing Trump would help the governor politically.
The decision risks Cox’s reputation with his moderate voting base, but is unlikely to do much to win over supporters of Trump’s “Make America Great Again” movement, many of whom booed Cox at the state GOP convention this year.
Aligning with Trump has been known to boost the political profiles of some Republicans, but the former president has been less influential in Utah.
The state is a rare Republican stronghold that has half-heartedly embraced Trump, whose divisive rhetoric and comments on refugees and immigrants don’t sit well with many members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. About half of Utah’s 3.4 million residents belong to a faith widely known as the Mormon Church.
Cox, a Latter-day Saint, said he believes God had a hand in saving Trump’s life, even calling it a miracle.
At the time of the July 13 shooting, President Joe Biden was clinging to his party’s nomination in the face of relentless pressure from many Democrats to suspend, who feared he could not win re-election after a disastrous debate against Trump in June.
Cox said in his letter to Trump that he was not seeking a cabinet position or a role on the team, but the governor told The Atlantic that he realized he could not have more influence in the party unless he was under Trump. on the side of.
Cox has not publicly expressed a desire to run for national office, but has worked to raise his profile outside of Utah by serving as president of the National Governors Association. His initiative as chairman, “Disagree Better”, focused on restoring civility to politics.
Trump’s endorsement comes a month after Cox defeated Phil Lyman, a staunch Trump supporter in the primary, who supported false claims of voter fraud after the 2020 presidential election. Lyman remained defiant, encouraging his supporters to put their names on the November ballot instead of voting for Cox, who is expected to defeat his Democratic opponent even without the support of the state’s MAGA group.
Cox is not the first moderate Republican, or even the first from Utah, to gravitate closer to Trump despite past opposition.
Romney had been one of Trump’s harshest critics during the 2016 election, calling him a fraud and a fraud. But after Trump’s victory, Romney met with the president for dinner to discuss the top diplomatic job in the Trump administration. After the meeting, he even praised Trump, but has since returned to being one of Trump’s harshest Republican critics.