Donald Trump slammed GOP presidential candidate Will Hurd for “SERIOUSLY” getting booed after he told an Iowa crowd that the former president was running for office to “stay out of prison.”
Trump mocked Hurd via his Truth Social platform on Saturday, one day after the former Texas congressman landed the jab that sparked boos and jeers at the Iowa GOP’s Lincoln Dinner.
“In Iowa last night I noticed that a little known, failed former Congressman, Will Hurd, is ridiculously running for President. He quit Congress because it would have been impossible for him to win in his district – he did a really bad job,” wrote Trump, referring to Hurd’s six years in Congress and his decision to not seek reelection in 2020.
The former president later called Hurd “wrong” over his dig before likening his performance on the campaign trail to that of former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
“Anyway, he got SERIOUSLY booed off the stage when he said I was running ‘to stay out of jail,’” wrote Trump, who spoke at the Iowa event after Hurd.
“Wrong, if I wasn’t running, or running and doing badly (like him & Christie!), with no chance to win, these prosecutions would never have been brought or happened!”
Hurd’s criticism comes as the former president faces three new felony charges this week in the special counsel’s investigation into his handling of classified documents.
Hurd, in response to Trump’s post, pointed to his careers in the military and Congress before taking additional swipes at the former president.
“Donald, I served on the front lines of the war on terror, then in Congress. I’ve dedicated my life to fighting for America. You turned down your opportunity over some bone spurs and then applauded an assault on America on Jan. 6,” wrote Hurd on Saturday.
He also linked to a Des Moines Register article on candidates “tiptoeing around” Trump indictments.
“Real leadership is standing up and fighting for what’s right for America. It’s not tiptoeing around Donald Trump. Anyone who idly sits back and doesn’t call him out is only enabling him,” Hurd wrote.
Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson also brought up Trump’s legal concerns at the Iowa event on Friday, calling on voters to declare a “new direction” for his party.
“As it stands right now, you will be voting in Iowa while multiple criminal cases are pending against former President Trump,” said the candidate, who was booed by a pro-Trump crowd earlier this month.
“Iowa has an opportunity to say, we as a party, we need a new direction for America and for the GOP. We are a party of individual responsibility, accountability and support for the rule of law. We must not abandon that.”
Trump continues to hold a commanding lead over fellow candidates in Iowa, leading Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis by 30 percentage points in a recent Fox Business poll of GOP caucus-goers in the state.