Former President Donald Trump is pushing back against a report that he warned he would start his own political party.
In a statement on Monday, âItâs a totally made up and fabricated story, itâs Fake News. Jonathan Karl is a third-rate reporter working for ABC Non-News.â
âABC Non-News and 3rd rate reporter Jonathan Karl have been writing Fake News about me from the beginning of my political career. Just look at what has now been revealed about the Russia, Russia, Russia hoax,â he continued.
ABC News Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl writes in his forthcoming book âBetrayalâ that Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel called Trump on Jan. 20 to âwish him farewell.â
âIt was a very un-pleasant conversation,â Karl reported. âDonald Trump was in no mood for small talk or nostalgic goodbyes. He got right to the point. He told her he was leaving the Republican Party and would be creating his own political party.â
McDaniel reportedly warned the former president that Republicans âwill lose foreverâ if he did.
âExactly. You lose forever without me. I donât care,â Trump said.
Karl went on to say that Trump allegedly believed âthat if he had lost, he wanted everybody around him to lose as well.â Additionally, he âwasnât simply floating an idea.â
âHe was putting the party chairwoman on notice that he had decided to start his own party. It was a done deal. He had made up his mind. âHe was very adamant that he was going to do it,â a source who heard the presidentâs comments later told me,â Karl said.
The Wall Street Journal reported in January that the former president had discussed starting a âPatriot Party.â
However, in a speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference in February, Trump said, âThat was fake news. Fake News.â
âWe have the Republican Party. Itâs going to unite and be stronger than ever before. I am not starting a new party,â he added.
Finally, he said, âWouldnât that be brilliant? Letâs start a new party, and letâs divide our vote, so that you can never win. No, weâre not interested in that.â
