WASHINGTON: Asa Hutchinson, a former governor of the southern US state of Arkansas, on Sunday announced his candidacy for the presidency in 2024, saying Donald Trump should quit the race to deal with his legal challenges.

“I’m going to run for president of the United States,” the 72-year-old conservative, who is also a former member of Congress, said on ABC’s “This Week.” “I want to provide an alternative” to Trump, he said, reaffirming a recent statement that if indicted, the former president should drop out of the race.

“For the sake of the office of the presidency, I do think that’s too much of a sideshow and distraction, and he needs to be able to concentrate on his due process,” Hutchinson said.

“I’ve always said that people don’t have to step aside from public office if they’re under investigation, but if it reaches the point of criminal charges that have to be answered, the office is always more important than a person.” Like other senior Republicans, however, Hutchinson said he was critical of what he knows about the pending indictment.

Making his own case, Hutchinson vowed to focus on issues including border security, the economy and US leadership.

“We have to talk about the leadership of America in the world, whenever you have Russia and China taking advantage of any weakness that America shows,” said Hutchinson, whose rural southern state also produced President Bill Clinton, a Democrat.

Trump’s looming presence and core of fiercely loyal supporters, united under the banner of his Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement, have left potential Republican rivals hesitant to commit.

Published in Dawn, April 3rd, 2023