Ben Shapiro, one of the co-founders of Daily Wire and a well-known critic of former President Donald Trump, surprising announced that he will be hosting a fundraiser for Trump next week.
On a Friday podcast, Shapiro disclosed that he will be co-hosting an upcoming fundraiser for Trump. He expressed his change of support for the former president by stating that in his opinion, Joe Biden is the worst commander-in-chief he has seen in his lifetime. Shapiro even went as far as to say that he would be willing to go through great obstacles, such as walking over broken glass, just to vote for the Republican nominee.
According to Shapiro, the calculus is simple: America was in a better state under Donald Trump than it is under Joe Biden. He believes that under Trump’s presidency, America was both safer and more prosperous.
In his statement, he emphasized his commitment to honesty and transparency regarding his views on Donald Trump. He candidly admitted that Trump was not his initial preference during the primaries, acknowledging the flaws in his character. He has been vocal in expressing his criticisms of Trump’s character and policy decisions. However, he firmly believes that Donald Trump is currently the best option to prevent Joe Biden from serving a second term as President of the United States.
Shapiro has consistently expressed strong criticism towards Trump throughout the years. He holds Trump responsible for the violent events that unfolded on January 6 at the U.S. Capitol. During this incident, a mob of Trump supporters, fueled by his baseless claims about the election, stormed the Capitol building and engaged in acts of violence, resulting in the loss of multiple lives and the injury of hundreds.
Ben Shapiro showed his support for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis during the Republican primary for the 2024 elections. However, after DeSantis withdrew from the race following his defeat in Iowa in January, Shapiro switched his endorsement to Donald Trump.
The conservative firebrand not only supported DeSantis but also vehemently criticized the media boosters of Trump. He slammed former Fox News host Tucker Carlson for conducting a “softball” interview with Trump back in August.
Why I'm Giving Money To Donald Trump pic.twitter.com/lHUZmfSrOp
— The Ben Shapiro Show (@BenShapiroShow) March 15, 2024
Ben Shapiro mocked Tucker Carlson’s softball questioning of Donald Trump, remarking on the absurdity of the question. In particular, Shapiro highlighted Carlson’s inquiry about Trump’s relationship with Mike Pence, suggesting that Trump had always been kind to his former vice president. Shapiro found this line of questioning to be strange and struggled to articulate a response.
Shapiro urged Republicans to distance themselves from Trump if they wanted to increase their chances of winning the general election against Biden. He warned that voting for the former president would only lead to negative consequences, stating that Republicans were “cruising for a bruising.”
In November, on X, Shapiro observed that Democrats have a strategic reason for keeping Trump at the forefront of discussions. According to him, nearly half of independent voters consider Trump a significant factor in their voting decisions, and these independents are leaning towards the Democrats by a ratio of 4 to 1. Shapiro cautioned Republicans against engaging in the same tactic, as he believed it could lead to negative consequences for them.
In addition, Shapiro was a member of the self-proclaimed #NeverTrump movement of Republicans back in 2016 who declined to support Trump for the nomination. In March 2016, he penned a column titled “I Will Never Vote For Donald Trump. Here’s Why.”