After opponent's remarks leak…
Despite losing a Trump-won congressional district by 13 points, J.R. Majewski is likely to win the Republican primary once again.
During the 2022 midterm elections, the National Republican Congressional Committee scrapped a $1 million ad buy for Majewski in the final stretch. The decision followed a damning report by the Associated Press that September, which found Majewski had exaggerated his service. Among other things, he claimed to have deployed to a combat zone in Afghanistan following the Sept. 11 attacks.
He even said he endured hardships like not showering for 40 days.
However, Air Force records show that Majewski was never deployed to Afghanistan. The closest he got to the war-torn country was Qatar, where he loaded planes for six months.
To this day, he refuses to apologize, claiming that his service was classified.
Air Force records state that in September 2001, the Air Force demoted Majewski for driving under the influence at Kadena Air Base in Japan, contradicting Majewski's earlier statement that he wasn't able to reenlist in the Air Force after completing his initial four-year term due to a “brawl.”
Despite the discrepancies in his record and landslide defeat, Majewski received endorsements from two leading Ohio Republicans, Sen. J.D. Vance and Secretary of State Frank LaRose, on Monday as he seeks to become the 2024 Republican nominee to challenge Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D) in Ohio's 9th Congressional District.
The endorsements came after a secret recording of Craig Riedel, a former state legislator and GOP candidate in the primary, became public. In the recording, Riedel reportedly told a major donor that he would not endorse former President Donald Trump. The recording was given to conservative activist Charlie Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA, a grassroots organization that supports Trump and his policies.
Riedel subsequently announced that he had endorsed Trump's 2024 campaign. However, the damage had been done. Ohio Rep. Max Miller, a former Trump staffer, rescinded his endorsement.
Riedel, who lost the 2022 GOP primary to Majewski, accused one of his most prominent backers, Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz, of having him secretly recorded and getting the tape to Kirk.
Riedel expressed his frustration with the situation on X, claiming that Gaetz and a social media trickster were trying to convince Trump to get involved in the congressional primary for Majewski.
No matter how the tape was leaked, the strategy is proving to be effective.
Per DNYUZ:
Mr. Trump, who endorsed Mr. Majewski in 2022, heralded him on Saturday while both attended a New York Young Republican Club gala, blaming the “deep state” for undermining Mr. Majewski during his last run.
Erica Knight, a spokeswoman for Mr. Majewski, said in a text message that he was expecting to be endorsed by Mr. Trump again.
A Trump campaign spokesman did not respond to request for comment.
Riedel has received support from more traditional Republican candidates, including Rep. Kevin McCarthy, before his historic ousting as speaker, and Americans for Prosperity Action, a grassroots organization founded by the Koch brothers. AFP Action has given nearly $250,000 to the Riedel campaign so far this cycle.
Riedel has not publicly commented on the controversy beyond social media.
Gaetz denies orchestrating the secret recording.
“Craig Riedel trashed Trump when he thought it would help him get a New Yorker to give him money,” he said. “We have enough people willing to say and do anything for campaign cash in Congress already. Craig Riedel exposed himself in his own words. I had nothing to do with it, though I wish I had.”
Aidan Johnson, a spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, in a statement called the Republican primary contest an “ugly and expensive race to the bottom.”
Steve Lankenau, the former mayor of Napoleon, Ohio, is also running in the Republican primary.
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