Donald Trump sat down with Fox News' Brian Kilmeade this week and the topic of possible VP candidates had come up.
There was one name that was missing, that being the name of Senator Tim Scott (R-S.C.)
Talking Points…
- Trump possible VP picks
- The rundown
- Analysis
To this point, I have narrowed it down to four people that I believe are now at the top of Donald Trump's list. That being Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL), JD Vance (R-OH), Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Governor Doug Burgum.
I have always believed that Scott was the one person who would give Trump the biggest edge heading into the election. He is a minority, well-liked, moderate, extremely smart, and very loyal. He literally checks every box that we need for a vice president to actually make a difference in this race.
I have always discounted Rubio because of the stipulation in the 12th Amendment that if the vice president and President reside in the same state, they forfeit the electoral college votes from that state. Trump clearly cannot afford to lose Florida, and I really don't want to see any legal maneuvering to circumvent the Constitution, so I wrote him off from the outset. I think choosing Rubio would be a monumental mistake for a party that uses the Constitution as its backbone.
I have learned a lot about Vance over the last few weeks and am reading his book to learn even more about him. There are some concerns here regarding his 2016 stance against Trump, but Trump really seems to like Vance, and Vance has done an excellent job deflecting away from those previous statements. Of the rest of the field, Vance would be my number two pick.
Governor Burgum would be another mistake in my eyes. This country is sick and tired of seeing old white guys hold the power, and Burgum is 67 years old. There is also the fact that Burgum signed a 6-week abortion law in North Dakota, which Democrats would attack. Burgum has stated that he believes abortion should be left to the states, but that law, in addition to his age, gives Dems all they need to take him out.
When Trump was asked about Rubio, he said he liked him, but the same state issue is "complication. Trump stated:
"But it does make it more complicated. You know, you do that, and it makes it more complicated. There are people that don't have that complication."
I know for a fact that Trump really likes Burgum, but I truly believe the abortion issue will keep him from being named as Trump's VP. Trump called the abortion law in North Dakota "a little bit of an issue," and Trump knows that Dems will go after this with everything they have, so I am going to say that Burgum is out as well.
That brings us to JD Vance, who has been fiercely loyal to Trump since announcing his intent to run for Senator. There were rumors that Trump did not like facial hair and that Vance had a beard, but Trump told Kilmeade that he had "never heard that one." Trump added:
"He looks good. He looks like a young Abraham Lincoln."
This announcement will be made in the next few days, with Trump preferring to do it during the convention. He sounds like he really wants to make it part of the convention, but I think he will probably make the announcement right before the RNC begins to get the news cycle fired up for the GOP. My personal wish is that Trump will give the nod to Senator Scott, but my gut tells me that Trump is going to give the nod to Vance. I think most Republicans will be able to live with either of those picks.
