So who is running for potus on the GOP side? Who will

[Celerity]

37. Tom Cotton 11 days ago said no chance he runs for POTUS in 2024.

Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton has decided that he won’t run for president in 2024 — making him the first big-name Republican to step aside as former President Donald Trump and others make moves toward running.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/cotton-passes-2024-presidential-run-220100772.html

The senator has been reaching out to donors, supporters and senior Republicans over the last few days to inform them of his plans, according to two people familiar with his deliberations. Cotton has attributed his decision to family concerns, saying that a national campaign would take him away from his two young sons, who are seven and five years old.

Cotton’s decision kicks off a critical period in the 2024 presidential election cycle. After this week’s midterm election, potential candidates — including Trump, some of his Cabinet officials and prominent Republican governors and senators — are set to face more urgent questions about whether they will enter the race after spending the last two years making preparations. Until this week, Cotton was one of those looking at a national campaign. He has spent much of the last two years campaigning across the country for Republican midterm candidates, using local races as an opportunity to introduce himself to voters.

He has taken a series of trips to Iowa and New Hampshire, which host the party’s first two presidential nominating contests. And he raised $8 million that could have seeded a presidential campaign account. Cotton also bolstered his national profile by releasing a book on military history, and he recently expanded his political operation, moving one of his top advisers, Brian Colas, from his Senate office to a role with his political action committee. Cotton also invited top donors to a post-midterm fundraising retreat at the Salamander Resort & Spa in Middleburg, Va., which was seen as a precursor to the launch of a national campaign.

But over the last few weeks, Cotton began cooling on the idea. This week, he began calling allies to tell them that he wouldn’t be running, citing the concerns about his family. During the calls, however, Cotton made clear that he would be open to serving in a future Republican presidential administration. Cotton — an Afghanistan and Iraq war veteran — was mentioned as a potential nominee for CIA director during the Trump administration.

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