New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu (R) is prompting chatter about a 2024 presidential bid, dubbing a potential run as an "opportunity to change things."
Sununu also nudged Republicans not to become too engulfed in the culture wars and focus on solving problems for everyday Americans, drawing a stark contrast with speculated 2024 hopeful Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
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"Ron's a very good governor, he is, but I'm just trying to remind folks what we are at our core," Sununu told CBS's Face the Nation. "If we're trying to beat the Democrats at being big government authoritarians, remember what's going to happen. Eventually, they'll have power in a state or in a position, and then they'll start penalizing conservative businesses."
DeSantis has risen to GOP stardom by wading into culture war skirmishes, taking government actions to counter instruction of what has been called critical race theory and woke instruction in classrooms, among other contentious policy moves. Sununu bashed woke culture but argued that government isn't the solution.
"That's a cultural problem we have to fix in America, and it starts with good leadership, good messaging, more hopeful and optimistic, but government never solves a cultural problem," he said.
The New Hampshire governor was in Washington, D.C., over the weekend for the National Governors Association's winter meeting. DeSantis was notably absent from the annual meeting, which featured a black-tie dinner at the White House.
Recently, Sununu formed his "Live Free or Die" committee, which is intended to gauge donor interests in a likely stepping stone for a 2024 campaign debut. He has previously taken digs at DeSantis and former President Donald Trump, the two favorites heading into a GOP presidential primary.
"A lot of opportunity to change things, right," Sununu said when asked about whether he will run. "I think New Hampshire has this awesome model of Live Free or Die: limited government, local control, individual responsibility, really putting the voters first."
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Sununu also urged Republicans not to become too consumed with fomenting anger against President Joe Biden.
"It drives me crazy when Republicans talk in an echo chamber about how bad the President is," he added. "You gotta be for something. What I'm trying to do is kind of show that New Hampshire model — show the opportunity to get stuff done."