Donald Trump is trying to jumpstart his lagging 2024 presidential bid by calling key Republicans in Iowa but his efforts have gone nowhere fast.

Key influencers in Iowa, a state that is considered crucial in the Republican presidential contest aren’t exactly at the former president’s beck and call anymore, Bloomberg reports.

There are two important people Trump especially needs in Iowa: Senator Chuck Grassley and Governor Kim Reynolds. Neither, however, answered the phone when he called. To add further insult to injury, Grassley and Reynolds are not willing to give the former superstar of the Republican party their support this early in the game. The same can be said for Sen. Joni Ernst and other top officials.

Trump is the only Republican to have declared his candidacy for 2024 at this point. He had hoped that by jumping in the game early he would have swept the field of any serious contenders, thus gaining the widespread support of the GOP. But that’s really a lot of wishful thinking when you consider he lost the 2020 presidential election, instigated the insurrection at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, and his canyon-sized unpopularity among most Americans. In the face of this, many Republican leaders are staying neutral and open to new blood, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

That’s not to say that Trump doesn’t have allies in many states, because he does. That’s why he’s traveling to South Carolina for a rally on Saturday, where he’ll be joined by Governor Henry McMaster and Sen. Lindsey Graham. Both have endorsed his 2024 presidential bid.

But Sen. Tim Scott, a Republican who’s viewed as a potential 2024 candidate, has not.

Iowa has proved to be a difficult state for Trump, who finished second in the state’s 2016 caucuses, behind Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). And the situation here doesn’t look any better for Trump because many of his former allies within the state don’t plan to board the Trump train this time around.

Among them:

• Former Iowa Governor Terry Branstad, who served as Trump’s ambassador to China. He has said he can’t get involved in politics this time around because of his new post running the World Food Prize.
• Matt Whitaker, who was chosen by the former president to serve as acting attorney general in 2018, doesn’t plan to immediately endorse his old boss. He’s told those in his orbit that he’d accept calls from other candidates, including DeSantis.
• Sherill Whisenand, a Des Moines GOP activist who caucused for Rick Perry in 2016, described Trump and DeSantis as “topic number one” at inauguration events after Reynolds was sworn in as governor for a second term on January 13.

“I can assure you most Republicans I know are not jumping on board” with Trump, she said. “The diehards are still there, but rank and file Republicans are definitely keeping their options open.”

Trump hasn’t put together an Iowa campaign team yet and is keeping the situation leisurely as he works to conserve money, say sources familiar with the situation.

One of Trump’s 2016 Iowa organizers hasn’t returned as yet but has said she’s still behind him.

And it looks like some Republicans are opposing him for something that he actually did right. Talk show host Steve Deace, who has connections with Christian conservatives in Iowa, notes that Trump alienated some in the GOP because he supported lockdowns early during the pandemic and for other healthcare freedom issues.

And of course, DeSantis has made himself look better by doing the opposite here, noting that he re-opened Florida schools and businesses earlier than many states. He’s also said the early lockdown was a mistake.

“DeSantis,” Deace said, “is basically a progeny of Trump — but a lot more likeable and a lot more electable.”

Trump has managed to alienate enough Republicans, meaning he’s in for a long slog. And since he’s now 76, this can’t be easy for him. But while Republicans may like DeSantis he’s basically a more intelligent version of the former president, and that’s not necessarily a good thing.  He is vehemently anti-LGBTQ and anti-abortion.

In other words, he’s Trump on steroids.