Trump Drops Names In VP Tease

Former President Donald Trump dropped the names of several contenders for his running mate and future cabinet members during an interview with Maria Bartiromo on Sunday Morning Futures.

When asked when he would formally announce his running mate, Trump said "Not for a while," adding "I mean, we have so many great people in the Republican Party, but not for a while."

"What criteria are you using to identify who your running mate is?" asked Bartiromo, to which Trump replied that he asks himself "who would be a good president?"

When asked point blank who he's going to choose for VP, Trump replied: "I have a lot of good ideas but I haven’t [decided]," but dropped several names under consideration.

But he mentioned the names of several contenders for the No. 2 position in the federal government, including Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem—two who have long been seen as top prospects. Other names commonly mentioned are Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) and House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.).

But President Trump specifically mentioned Mr. Scott and Ms. Noem during the interview. -Epoch Times

"I called Tim Scott ... and I said, ‘You are a much better candidate for me than you were for yourself,’" Trump said of Scott, who mounted a bid for the White House last year but dropped out after failing to gain traction - later endorsing Trump.

"I watched him in the last week defending me and sticking up for me and fighting for me, and I said, ‘Man, you’re a much better person for me than you are for yourself.’ Because for himself, he was low key,” President Trump said. “For me, he’s been a he’s been a real tiger. He’s been incredible."

When asked if Scott would be his running mate, Trump said "It could be, it could be a lot of people," adding "Kristi Noem has been incredible fighting for me."

"She said, ‘I’d never run against him because I can’t beat him.' That was a very nice thing to say."

Donald Trump tells Maria Bartiromo the ‘one thing’ required of his running mate pic.twitter.com/OMnsl2wgWL

— Julianna (@JuliannaFrieman) February 4, 2024

As the Epoch Times notes further, Trump also responded to speculation over RFK Jr.

Mr. Kennedy, the son of former Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, is currently mounting an Independent bid for the White House. Like President Trump, Mr. Kennedy has run an anti-establishment campaign, criticizing the existing bureaucracy and claiming himself to be the target of oppositional state actors.

With similar themes and messaging across their campaign, the prospect of the two men teaming up has long been discussed in politics.

However, both men have on separate occasions denied the speculation, with each saying they have too many differences to effectively create a ticket.

During her interview with President Trump, Ms. Bartiromo cited reports that President Trump’s campaign team had reached out to Mr. Kennedy to share a ticket.

Some of these would be returning faces, President Trump said.

“Is it fair to believe that you would have a number of your former officials in your new cabinet?” Ms. Bartiromo asked.

“I will put some back,” President Trump replied.

President Trump acknowledged, as he has on other occasions, that he made some staffing mistakes during his last stint in the White House, but he dismissed the importance of these missteps.

“Of course, but everybody does,” President Trump replied when asked about those.

As on other occasions, he emphasized that he was an outsider to Washington in 2016, forcing him to rely on advice from people who didn’t have his best interests at heart.

Now, President Trump said, “I know people I didn’t know before. I know now the smart ones, I know the dumb ones, I know the weak ones and the strong ones.”

Regarding potential returning figures, President Trump was demure.

Asked about the prospect of former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo making a return, President Trump said, “I don’t know.”

He was also asked about former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe, who President Trump praised as “fantastic.”

He said that Mr. Ratcliffe “has done a great job.”

President Trump added that Dr. Ben Carson, former head of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, had also done a great job.

“So you’re expecting them to be in your cabinet?” Ms. Bartiromo asked.

“Some of them,” President Trump replied. “I mean, if somebody did a good job, I would do that. Yeah.”

Jerome Powell, chairman of the Federal Reserve, won’t be making a return if President Trump is reelected, he also suggested.

Biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, a Trump rival-turned-campaign surrogate, is also seen as a likely cabinet member, though this was not addressed during the interview.