'Don't hold it against him': Ramaswamy on Trump calling his campaign 'deceitful'

Reacting to former US President Donald Trump’s verbal attack, Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy on Sunday said that he is not assigning much weight to Trump’s first criticism of his campaign. “I interpret it as bad campaign strategist corporate consultant advice that he might have received, and so I don’t hold it against him. … He’s been a great president,” CNN quoted Ramaswamy as saying. Ramaswamy said Trump will not be able to secure victory in the general election due to his strong legal obstacles and political opposition. Asked whether he believes the timing of Trump’s attack suggests the former president may feel threatened by his campaign, Ramaswamy refused to speculate on Trump’s intentions. However, he reiterated his belief that his campaign is witnessing a “late surge” in Iowa. “I can’t speak for anybody else’s attitude towards our campaign. What I can tell you is that you’d have to have your head stuck in that snow pile to believe that we’re not having a late surge here in this race,” he told CNN. Ramaswamy’s comments follow a recent attack from Trump, who criticised his campaign as “deceitful” and advised supporters against “wasting” their votes on him. Trump asserted that the Indian-American leader is not aligned with the ‘MAGA’ (Make America Great Again) movement, emphasising that casting a vote for Ramaswamy is essentially supporting the “other side.” On Truth Social, Trump elaborated, stating, “Vivek started his campaign as a great supporter, “the best President in generations,” etc. Unfortunately, now all he does is disguise his support in the form of deceitful campaign tricks. Very sly, but a vote for Vivek is a vote for the “other side” - don’t get duped by this.” “Vote for “TRUMP,” don’t waste your vote! Vivek is not MAGA. The Biden Indictments against his Political Opponent will never be allowed in this Country, they are already beginning to fall! MAGA!!!” he added. Significantly, there has been a notable shift in Trump’s rhetoric about Ramaswamy compared to his stance during the campaign. Trump’s recent attack on Ramaswamy is not only the first but also the most assertive, following a string of comments and posts by Ramaswamy that have irked Trump and his team, according to Trump’s advisors. In the past, Ramaswamy refrained from criticising Trump and, in fact, frequently commended him during the campaign. However, on a recent occasion, Ramaswamy shared an image on X where he was pictured alongside supporters wearing “Save Trump, vote Vivek” T-shirts. The shirts featured a depiction of Trump’s mug shot from his processing at the Fulton County jail in Georgia in August. The post, which was shown to Trump, “infuriated” him, CNN reported citing an advisor. The advisor noted that Trump feels Ramaswamy has been working to undercut his candidacy while falsely painting himself as a Trump supporter. Trump and his campaign were also annoyed over an interview Ramaswamy gave to NBC News and The Des Moines Register earlier this month. During the interview, Ramaswamy repeatedly described Trump as “wounded.” Ramaswamy said, “They don’t have on me what they have on him,” stressing that he is better positioned to implement Trump’s agenda, CNN reported. Trump’s team insisted they had not seen anything in the polls to indicate Ramaswamy was gaining on Trump in Iowa and this response was based on Ramaswamy’s recent comments and posts. Meanwhile, Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy said he believes his campaign is gaining momentum in Iowa one day before the Iowa caucuses. In the final Des Moines Register poll before Monday’s caucus, 8 per cent of caucusgoers said Ramaswamy was their first choice for president, putting him behind Donald Trump, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Speaking to reports in Iowa on Sunday, Ramaswamy said he thinks he will defy expectations on Monday night and said he’s looking forward to “delivering a shock to the world,” CNN reported. He was interrupted during his remarks on multiple occasions. Ramaswamy engaged in a series of tense exchanges with a voter who repeatedly interrupted his remarks and he was accosted by the hosts of The Good Liars podcast. A voter repeatedly questioned Ramaswamy about his relationship with Trump and whether he would join a ticket with Trump as the vice presidential nominee. In response, Ramaswamy intends to win the nomination and become president. With inputs from agencies