Public polling and the early 2024 primary results confirm the Republican base’s overwhelming support for Donald Trump’s quest to secure the GOP nomination. New Jersey isn’t an exception to the rule, but the state’s party establishment is less than unanimous in its support for the former president. In fact, conventional wisdom in insider circles posits that Trump’s 2016 campaign doomed Garden State Republicans running in affluent suburban communities.
One of Trump’s most vocal New Jersey critics is attorney Bill Palatucci, a key Chris Christie ally and the state party’s national committeeman to the Republican National Committee (RNC), a senior party position. Palatucci previously served as general counsel to the Trump Transition Committee back in 2016 and 2017; now he’s reportedly a leader of the small but sometimes unapologetically loud Never Trump faction inside of the party establishment.
Just this week, Palatucci cheered a D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling permitting the prosecution of Trump for alleged crimes committed while he was in office, a blow to the Trump legal team’s attempt to assert presidential immunity.
“This RNC member agrees – no one is a king,” Palatucci posted on X. “Circuit Court of Appeals got it right.”
This RNC member agrees – no one is a king. Circuit Court of Appeals got it right. @RNC https://t.co/027PFxYbJf
— Bill Palatucci (@billpalatucci) February 7, 2024
Perhaps ironically, while it’s a distinct legal construct from immunity, then-Governor Christie repeatedly invoked executive privilege during the Bridgegate corruption scandal.
Having a national committeeman hostile to President Trump has arguably proved challenging for the cause of New Jersey Republicans in their interactions with the national party. Most recently, the RNC stripped 40 delegates from New Jersey’s 2024 convention delegation after the RNC adopted a May 31st deadline for states to confirm their delegations. Palatucci voted for the rule despite the fact that New Jersey primaries occur in June. The state party failed to obtain a waiver to circumvent the calendar problem leaving New Jersey Republicans with only 9 delegates for the convention in the event that, for example, a rogue court attempts to bar President Trump from the ballot and shenanigans commence on the convention floor.
