There has been yet another twist in the Trump VP stakes.
According to new reports, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum is now on Trump’s shortlist.
Talking Points…
- Realistic Trump VP candidates
- Burgum enters the picture
- Analysis
At one point, the list of Trump’s possible VP candidates read like “War & Peace.” Over the last month or so, most of those names have fallen off for one reason or another. Vivek Ramaswamy, Dr. Ben Carson, Governor Kristi Noem, Kari Lake, Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL), Senator J.D. Vance, and Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) should all be crossed off as far as I can tell.
This has more or less left us with Senator Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.). Besides Trump having a soft spot for Stefanik, I don’t see the draw in having her as the VP. She is from a state that Trump cannot win, and she brings nothing else to the table in terms of drawing in more voters.
Scott, on the other hand, will help Trump enormously with the minority vote, which is something the GOP needs to capitalize on during this election. Biden has some of the lowest approval ratings among blacks and Hispanics I have ever seen. Scott clearly brings that to the table, not to mention the calmer personality, which I believe would help Trump draw in more moderates.
Burgum has been backing Trump since he left the race, and he is apparently quite the fundraiser. He has very quietly been doing a remarkable job for Trump on this front, and he has gradually worked his way up the ladder for consideration. There were rumors before that Trump was looking at Burgum for a high-profile cabinet position, but the VP spot is a new ballgame for him.
If Burgum gets the VP spot, it will immediately make him the frontrunner for 2028 if Trump wins this election. According to Trump insiders, Trump has already stated that he wants Burgum to play a “very important” role in his administration. Burgum is clearly far more important to Trump than most of us realized.
I have no issues with Burgum, but I don’t see what he would bring to the table as the VP. Trump, mistakenly, I might add, thinks the VP position means nothing, having previously stated:
“They’re voting for the president. They’re not voting for the vice president. There has, not that I can think of, never been a vice president that’s made much of a difference in terms of nomination and in terms of even winning the election.”
That is just flat-out wrong, even going back to just Trump’s VP, Mike Pence, in 2016. Pence helped Trump land the evangelical vote, which played a significant role in his winning the election. Kamala Harris improved Joe Biden’s numbers with black voters, and Joe Biden helped improve Barack Obama’s numbers with older, white voters.
Burgum has been a very good governor, so I have no problem with Trump tapping him for his administration. I would prefer it, actually, as I believe Trump will have a real problem getting top talent because of everything that happened in his last administration. Burgum could serve as a calming voice of reason, something this administration will very badly need.
Having said that, I also believe that Scott is the no-brainer choice for Trump in this election. If Scott is on the ticket, I don’t see how Trump can lose if he can avoid a conviction in the federal indictments. Save Burgum for a high-profile cabinet member, but make that VP Tim Scott.
