Democratic Representative Jamie Raskin said President Donald Trump should “speak for himself” after Trump said many people do not know what the word “incumbent” means while criticizing Alaska’s U.S. Raskin made the remark during an interview on NBC News’ Meet the Press as he discussed the controversy surrounding two candidates named Dan Sullivan in Alaska’s closely watched Senate race. It could not be clearer,” Raskin said.
He should speak for himself, because the vast majority of Americans obviously do.” But Raskin also criticized the alleged effort to recruit candidates who shared the Republican senator’s name, calling it “stupid politics” and “ridiculous politics.” Newsweek has contacted the White House and the campaigns of Republican Senator Dan Sullivan and Democrat Mary Peltola for comment. Trump made his original comment on October 25 while arguing that Alaska’s ballot did not sufficiently distinguish between incumbent Republican Senator Dan S. Sullivan Jr., a retired teacher also running for the Senate.
The president said the senator should have been identified more explicitly. The ballot identifies the Republican senator as “Dan S. Sullivan,” includes his party registration and labels him “Incumbent.” His challenger appears as “Daniel J.
Sullivan Jr.” without a party designation beneath his name. Trump has repeatedly argued that the arrangement could confuse voters and hurt the senator, whom he has endorsed. Alaska election officials have maintained that they designed the ballot to distinguish between the two candidates as clearly as possible.
Attorneys for Alaska have also pointed to the candidates’ different initials, the use of “Jr.” for the challenger and the senator’s Republican and incumbent designations. Raskin was asked during Sunday’s interview about The New York Times’ reporting that Peltola aides instructed a staffer to find people in Alaska named Dan Sullivan. The newspaper also reported that Peltola’s former campaign manager said the candidate was “definitely aware” of the effort.
The former campaign manager later sought to retract her statements, while Peltola and her campaign have denied involvement. Asked whether such a tactic would cross an ethical line even if it were legal, Raskin said: “I’m sure I would never do it. Nobody would do that, and Mary Peltola has said she had nothing to do with that.” Raskin said sharing another candidate’s name does not prevent someone from seeking office.
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