Speculation is building that Sen. Josh Hawley may be laying groundwork for a 2028 presidential run — and Donald Trump isn’t thrilled about it, Axios reported Tuesday.
A person described as a Trump confidant told the outlet the president is “somewhere between frustrated and confounded” about why the chatter has picked up, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
Hawley has long shown a willingness to break from Republican leadership and, at times, the White House on key issues. In 2020, he joined forces with Bernie Sanders to push for a second $1,200 COVID stimulus check. More recently, he has taken positions that have put him at odds with Trump-aligned priorities.
He has criticized pieces of Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” zeroing in on proposed Medicaid cuts that were projected to hit Republican-led states hard. Hawley has also backed a ban on stock trading for members of Congress, voted with Democrats to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies, and supported legislation aimed at limiting Trump’s military authority following the U.S. attack and takeover of Venezuela.
Trump, meanwhile, has escalated his criticism of Hawley in recent months. He publicly labeled him a “second-tier” senator over the stock-trading ban and, this month, said Hawley should “never be elected to office again” for trying to curb his military authority.
With the possibility of a Hawley presidential bid now drawing more attention — and with Trump offering soft backing for both JD Vance and Marco Rubio — the tension appears to be growing among Trump and his allies.
“Hawley has turned out to be a major disappointment as of late,” pro-Trump influencer Alex Bruesewitz told Axios, according to the report.
