Audio recording reveals the moment that senior Republican figure tried to bribe Kari Lake not to run for Senate
by Rob Crilly, Dailymail.com, January 23, 2024
An audio recording obtained by DailyMail.com reveals the extraordinary moment when what appears to be Arizona's top Republican official tried to bribe populist firebrand Kari Lake not to run in the state's Senate race.
Jeff DeWit, 51, chair of the Arizona Republican Party, can be heard asking Lake, a close ally of Donald Trump, to name her price to stay out of politics for two years.
DeWit tells Lake, 54, one of the most public faces of the former president's MAGA movement and a woman frequently spoken of as a 2024 vice-presidential pick, that he thinks Trump will lose and it is time to make way for someone else.
After asking her not to mention the conversation to anyone, he makes his first offer.
'So the ask I got today from back east was: "Is there any companies out there or something that could just put her on the payroll to keep her out?’
'This is about defeating Trump and I think that's a bad, bad thing for our country,' she said.
Later, DeWit, who was chief operating officer on the Trump's 2020 campaign frames it differently.
'Just say, is there a number at which....' he begins.
Lake cut in: 'I can be bought? That's what it's about.'
'You can take a pause for a couple of years. You can go right back to what you're doing.'
Lake repeatedly rebuffs him and says she wouldn't do it for a billion dollars.
'This is not about money, it's about our country,' she says.
Two sources confirmed DeWit's identity as the speaker.
He and his press secretary did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Lake's office also did not respond.
At the time of their conversation, Lake was publicly mulling a run for the U.S. Senate.
And the episode reveals the tensions triggered after she refused to accept defeat in the 2022 Arizona governor race.
UPDATE: Arizona GOP Chairman Resigns Amid Kari Lake Bribery Allegations
She emerged as a national figure, becoming a regular on Fox News as she echoed Trump's election denialism. That put her at odds with the more traditional wing of the Republican Party who feared a new breed of Trump loyalist may alienate big donors.
In October, she announced her run.
Lake has previously discussed the extraordinary effort to keep her out of the race, but never revealed who was behind it.
On Monday, Arizona talk show host Garret Lewis named DeWit, who was elected chairman of the party in January last year.
He was state treasurer of the party before being appointed by Trump to be NASA's chief financial officer.
Arizona party officials quickly called for him to step down as news of his offer to Lake spread.
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Analysis from Sundance at The Conservative Tree House:
Quit pretending this is a surprise….
This is just Mitch McConnell crap.
Most casual political observers have absolutely no idea how McConnell works. However, for over a decade CTH has been trying –mostly failing– to awaken the base of common sense voters. In 2010, 2011 and 2012 the #1 priority for McConnell was to destroy the threat represented by the Tea Party. In 2022 we were seeing an exact replay of the same McConnell intents and purposes, only this time the target was President Trump’s MAGA movement.
It is a motive and agenda all wrapped up in the senate power structure. McConnell does not fear being in the minority; the color of the flag atop the spire of the UniParty senate does not matter to those underneath it. McConnell maneuvers with just as much power in the minority as he does in the majority; factually, he makes more money selling his DeceptiCon caucus votes to Chuck Schumer (on behalf of Wall Street) than he does in the majority where he is forced to purchase them. The entire thing is a rigged-game.
To remind ourselves how Minority and Majority Senator McConnell took down the threat of the Tea Party revisit these old articles: CNN Part I and CNN Part II both showcase how McConnell works. Then do some research on how McConnell worked with Haley Barbour in Mississippi [SEE HERE].
For those who follow the deep weeds of politics, McConnnell’s schemes are brutally transparent.
Good for Kari Lake to stand firm and tell them to get stuffed.
