Nancy Mace competes for the title of looniest House GOPer

Created
Sat, 14/10/2023 - 07:30
Updated
Sat, 14/10/2023 - 07:30
And she might just win it There’s a new “crazy Nancy” in town and she is very, very weird: When former President Donald Trump lined up his top supporters at a hot and sticky rally in South Carolina’s Lowcountry two weeks ago, one of the state’s most visible GOP politicians was notably not in attendance. Despite her ubiquity on TV and social media, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) wasn’t even an intro speaker. In a sense, Mace’s absence wasn’t surprising. In 2021, her first year in office, she went from harshly criticizing Trump over Jan. 6 to groveling in a self-filmed video in front of Trump Tower after the former president endorsed her 2022 primary challenger, Katie Arrington. A week after the South Carolina rally, Mace’s vote to end Kevin McCarthy’s speakership—and her confusing justification for it—may have obliterated whatever relationships she had left in the GOP. Yet, Mace has been privately telling Republicans that she has a real shot at being named Trump’s vice presidential nominee for the 2024 election, according to six Republicans familiar with the discussions. Three South Carolina Republicans also said they’ve heard about Mace floating herself as a VP pick, dating back to the early summer. Given their history, the idea sounds absurd to people who know Trump and Mace. A source close to Trump said the former president “absolutely hates Nancy Mace,” while a former senior aide to the congresswoman put it more bluntly. “I would see Trump pick [Mike] Pence before he picks Mace,” the former staffer said. […] The two Republicans share…