2024 candidates need to be able to take a hint, Chris Sununu says
"There could be 12 people that get in. The key, the discipline, is getting out," he said.
Gov. Chris Sununu said Sunday it doesn't matter how many Republicans enter the 2024 presidential field — it matters how long they stay.
"Everyone says, there are going to be too many folks getting in. There could be 12 people that get in. The key, the discipline, is getting out," Sununu (R-N.H.) said on CNN's "State of the Union."
"The discipline is come November, late December, if you're sitting in low single digits, get your butt out of the race, let's narrow this thing down to two or three candidates and really figure out where the party is going to go.
Sununu has strongly suggested he's going to join the Republican field — he said Sunday he'd probably decide in the "next week or two" — but has yet to make it official.
Two other Republicans, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, entered last week, though former President Donald Trump remains the early frontrunner for the 2024 presidential nod. Some Republicans who oppose Trump have suggested that it is to Trump's advantage for more Republicans to join the race and, therefore, splinter the anti-Trump vote in the party.
"What we've all learned is, you can't prevent candidates from getting in," Sununu said.
New Hampshire's governor credited DeSantis for recognizing the need to come into his state and Iowa and focus on the voters there.
He also said Trump, at least thus far, was doing better than expected. "He's playing this victim card," Sununu said of Trump.
Asked about Saturday's debt ceiling deal, Sununu saw much to celebrate.
"It’s a miracle. I mean, release the doves," he told host Jake Tapper. "Washington actually is moving forward. Both sides seem pretty frustrated, which means it’s probably a pretty good deal actually."