Trump top campaign adviser: 'The president wants to see every Republican reelected'

By Kelly Hooper
·2 min read
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Trump senior campaign adviser Corey Lewandowski insisted on Sunday that President Donald Trump “wants to see every Republican reelected, regardless of who they are,” contradicting comments the president reportedly made at an earlier fundraiser.

Trump told donors privately last week that it would be "very tough" for Republicans to retain Senate control in the Nov. 3 elections, The Washington Post reported Saturday. Trump also said there were some senators he wouldn't even "want to help" get reelected, The Post reported.

"There are a couple senators I can’t really get involved in. I just can’t do it. You lose your soul if you do. I can’t help some of them. I don’t want to help some of them," Trump told donors, according The Post.

On Sunday, though, Lewandowski said on NBC's "Meet the Press" the president has been "aggressively campaigning for members of the U.S. Senate," and the Trump team is confident that Republicans will retain a Senate majority in the November elections.

Asked whether Trump was referring to Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) in his comments about senators he wouldn't want to help, Lewandowski asserted "the president wants to see every Republican reelected regardless of who they are and if they break with the president on some of the issues — and the reason is the alternative is much worse."

Trump recently blasted Collins on Twitter over her opposition to Judge Amy Coney Barrett's Supreme Court nomination. Collins is in a tough reelection fight against Democratic Maine state House Speaker Sara Gideon, whose well-funded campaign could deny Collins a fifth term in the Senate.

Trump is set to visit Maine on Sunday to campaign in the 2nd Congressional District, which he won four years ago and "could be pivotal in this election cycle," Lewandowski said.

"Obviously, this president wants to make sure that, in addition to his reelection, we're retaining the majority in the US Senate and we're taking back the House of Representatives," Lewandowski said.