White House apologizes to former 2024 candidate Asa Hutchinson as Biden courts anti-Trump GOP

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House on Wednesday apologized to former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson for a Democratic National Committee statement a day earlier that mocked the end of his long-shot 2024 bid for the Republican presidential nomination.

White House chief of staff Jeff Zients called Hutchinson on Wednesday morning “to apologize on behalf of the president,” said press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. “President Biden has deep respect for Gov. Hutchinson and admires the race that he ran,” she added.

Hutchinson posted on the social media site X: “The call from the White House was not necessary but still appreciated. We can disagree without demonizing.”

<bsp-list-loadmore data-module="" class=«PageListStandardB» data-gtm-region=«RELATED NEWS» data-gtm-topic=«No Value» data-gtm-modulestyle=«List B»> <bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> RELATED NEWS </bsp-custom-headline> <bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson ends his 2024 campaign after sixth-place finish in Iowa caucuses </bsp-custom-headline> <bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> DeSantis shifts his campaign away from New Hampshire days before the state’s primary, AP sources say<use xlink:href="#play-icon" xmlns:xlink=«http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink»> </bsp-custom-headline> <bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> Some New Hampshire residents want better answers from the 2024 candidates on the opioid crisis<use xlink:href="#play-icon" xmlns:xlink=«http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink»> </bsp-custom-headline> </bsp-list-loadmore>

DNC press secretary Sarafina Chitika on Tuesday responded to Hutchinson’s decision to end his campaign with a statement saying: “This news comes as a shock to those of us who could’ve sworn he