(NewsNation) — 2024 Republican presidential candidate Asa Hutchinson doubled down Monday on his call for former President Donald Trump to drop out of the race, citing Trump’s legal troubles.
“I believe the office is more important than the person,” the former Arkansas Governor said during “Elizabeth Vargas Reports” on Monday.
Hutchinson, who announced his bid for the GOP presidential nomination Sunday, called Trump’s ongoing investigations “distractions” and said they will make it difficult for voters to focus on things that matter like the fentanyl crisis.
When asked about Trump’s recent feature in a song by a group of men convicted of crimes tied to Jan. 6, Hutchinson said he was troubled by it.
“I think it was wrong,” he said. “Obviously, he did it because it would create a stir and he’s good at creating stirs.”
The 2024 GOP hopeful said Trump was minimizing what happened on Jan. 6 and undermining the justice system.
Hutchinson, 72, left office in January after eight years as governor of Arkansas.
In recent months, he has ramped up his criticism of the former president, calling another Trump presidential nomination the “worst case scenario” for Republicans.
“I believe that America needs to have an alternative,” he said. “I don’t think they want to have a Trump, Biden contest again.”
Hutchinson is the first Republican to enter the race since Trump became the first U.S. president to ever face criminal charges. Now, the former Arkansas governor’s candidacy will test how eager the GOP is to move on from Trump.
You can watch the full interview with Hutchinson and NewsNation’s Elizabeth Vargas in the player above.