Former Pres. Donald Trump Planned to Leave GOP to Create New Political Party: Book
Former U.S. President Donald Trump has reportedly planned to leave GOP and create his own political party, according to a new book by ABC News Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl.
The book noted that Trump told the chairwoman of the Republican National Committee in a conversation on his final day as president that he was leaving GOP and creating a new political party, according to an ABC News Go report.
However, Trump backed down on his threat when Republican leaders said that they would take actions that would have cost Trump millions of dollars.
The book entitled "Betrayal: The Final Act of the Trump Show" noted that the conversation and Trump's plan to leave the party occurred just after Trump boarded Air Force One as his last flight as a U.S. president.
Karl writes that RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel called to wish Trump farewell, adding that it was a very unpleasant conversation.
Trump's Final Day as President
Reports noted that Trump was agitated in his final days as president as he lost his presidency to U.S. President Joe Biden by more than seven million votes, according to a Forbes report. In addition, Trump was also facing a second impeachment as president for his role in inciting his supporters to breach the U.S. Capitol on January 6 and overturn election results.
Trump has openly criticized his own party and GOP's top officials on several occasions. He refused to rule out an independent run for the presidency if he didn't win the party's nomination.
Trump reportedly said on the call with the RNC chairwoman that this is what "Republicans deserve" for not backing him up.
In March, he wrote that the committee was comprised of "fools" who do not have in mind GOP's best interest. Trump earlier wrote that the committee does nothing but hurt the GOP and their voting base, adding "they will never lead us to Greatness," according to a Rolling Stone report.
Karl writes in the book that Trump was not simply putting the idea on the table; rather, he was putting RNC chairwoman on notice to start his own party.
One RNC official told the author of the book that they told Trump's side that there were a lot of things they still depend on the RNC for, and if they were to commence their plan, it would all go away.
McDaniel and her team noted that if Trump left the party, GOP would immediately stop paying legal bills incurred during post-election challenges.
Meanwhile, both Trump and McDaniel denied the story.
The RNC chairwoman said that Trump and she have a great relationship, while Trump dismissed the story by saying that Karl has been writing fake news about him from the beginning of his political career.
Karl responded to McDaniel on air, saying that he spoke to multiple people regarding the matter, including witnesses to the conversation with Trump, according to an Axios report.
Trump has faced numerous legal battles, including civil actions with allegations he violated the Voting Rights Act and the Ku Klux Klan Act, which prohibits the intimidation of public officials. There were also multiple claims that he defrauded people, including a family member.
This article is owned by Latin Post.
Written by: Mary Webber
WATCH: Trump Planned To Leave GOP For New Political Party, New Book Reports - from Forbes Breaking News