"I've always said, Maria, that I'm not running for president," Hawley told "Fox News Primetime" host Maria Bartiromo. "It's a privilege to represent the state of Missouri in the United States Senate. I just got elected barely two years ago. There's a lot of work to do, and I look forward to continuing to fight for Missouri every day that I can."
The firebrand senator was believed by some to be angling for higher office after he drew nationwide attention by standing up to Big Tech and retaliating against "conservative censorship" by proposing audacious bills to rein in their power.
Democratic senators turned against Hawley earlier this month after he challenged Electoral College results, eluding that he had helped spur the deadly Capitol riot Jan. 6 and helped to "undermine" democracy. Some Democrats have called for the resignation of Hawley and Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Fla., while others submitted an ethics complaint against him, claiming he "lent legitimacy to the mob’s cause and made future violence more likely."
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Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., another prospective candidate, has also shut down the circulating rumors that he could seek the presidency in 2024, while Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said he hadn't yet given thought to the idea. "I'm running for the Senate in 2022. I haven't thought beyond that," he told Insider.
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Hawley, 41, was the first senator to promise to object to President Biden’s win in Congress. He was heavily criticized after a photo of him outside the Capitol with his fist raised in the air toward "Save America" rallygoers came into question after the pro-Trump protesters stormed the Capitol.
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Hawley has called for the Senate Ethics Committee to investigate the seven Democrats who filed the complaint against him and Cruz for filing "an unprecedented frivolous and improper ethics complaint ... without citing any relevant evidence or offering any good-faith argument."
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Hawley on Jan. 6 joined a House member's objection to the Pennsylvania Electoral College votes, triggering two hours of debate in each chamber over the validity of the slate and votes on whether Congress should reject them. Cruz objected to Arizona's electors.
In return, Publisher Simon & Schuster canceled Hawley’s book deal following the riot.
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The Republican fired back on Twitter, spewing: "This could not be more Orwellian Simon & Schuster is canceling my contract because I was representing my constituents, leading a debate on the Senate floor on voter integrity, which they have now decided to redefine as sedition."
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Nonetheless, Hawley, who joined the Senate in 2019 and is up for reelection in 2024, could change his mind about launching a presidential bid, of course. Hawley himself has appeared to flip on matters of running for higher office in the past.
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