Thread: Trump Will Pick One Of These 3 For VP... 2 Of The Names May Shock You

Who Will Be Trump’s Running Mate? Looking At A Dozen Candidates, 3 Favorites Emerge

"... somebody with great political experience ..."

Randy DeSoto May 4, 2016 at 12:39pm

Now that Donald Trump’s remaining GOP rivals have left the race, speculation switches to who the presumptive GOP nominee will choose as a running mate. Several strong possibilities rise to the fore.

A few key criteria are in play as a candidate considers who he or she wants to join the ticket, including electability, compatibility and competence.

Trump made clear on ABC’s Good Morning America on Wednesday that to fill this bill he will be choosing a politician. “It will probably be a person with political experience,” the candidate stated.

“Trump said he could handle two of the three major priorities of a president but would need help with the third,” The Hill reported.

“You have the military sphere, you have the political sphere and you have the business. Well the business I handle. I’m going to be very, very good on the military,” Trump said. “I think probably I would like to go with somebody with great political experience.”

The presumptive nominee, in a push to increase his electability, will want to pick not only a politician, but one who brings in a region of the country where he may not be strong, or a portion of the electorate that he would likely have problems reaching. Regarding the latter, areas of Trump weakness include with women, minorities and those who identify as very conservative.

The second criteria of compatibility simply takes into account whether the two individuals can get along politically and otherwise.

Finally, competence means voters must feel confident this person could actually go the job if called upon to be the president.

With these three criteria in mind, let’s take a look at some potential Trump running mates.

1. New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez. She would likely improve Trump’s unfavorable ratings with women, Hispanics and conservatives and is certainly competent. However, compatibility would likely be the issue. As reported by Western Journalism, Fox News host Bill O’Reilly believes Martinez is the “only pick” for Trump, but pundit Dana Perino countered that it would not be a good fit.

The New Mexico governor has been critical of comments Trump has made about Hispanics, and called his plans to build a wall and have Mexico pay for it unrealistic and irresponsible.

2. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. Trump and Christie are clearly compatible, and the governor possesses the requisite competence. Where Christie is lacking is improving the electability of Trump. Both are from the Northeast, with the same plain-speaking, at times brusk, bombastic manner. Christie, like Trump, is also considered somewhat of a centrist.

3. South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley. Haley would bring to the ticket similar strengths as Martinez, but again has expressed major misgivings about Trump.

4. Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst. The freshman senator would likely help Trump with women and conservatives, and is from a swing state. She served as an Army National Guard lieutenant colonel in the Iraq war and exudes an air of competence. The compatibility of the two is not known. She has not been a particularly outspoken critic and has a strong political friendship with former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who has backed Trump.

5. Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin. The governor has indicated that she is open to joining a Trump ticket. She would appear to meet all three criteria. Fallin endorsed Trump on Wednesday.

6. Florida Gov. Rick Scott. Scott endorsed Trump and hails from a swing state. Again, all three criteria are met.

7. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio. The senator would help with electability, and given his years in federal and state government is competent. Trump made a habit of calling his once-rival “Little Marco” along with other derogatory names, which finally spurred Rubio to respond in kind, briefly. The senator has said he is not interested in the vice president slot and does not believe Trump is a conservative. However, former political opponents have been known to get together after the heat of the battle subsides (Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush in 1980, for example).

8. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. Gingrich has been a proponent of Trump’s candidacy, sticking up for him when many in the so-called GOP establishment did not. Compatibility and competence are not in question. The former speaker would also at least likely bring in some from the Republican base with misgivings about Trump, so he offers some electability upside.

9. Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions. The senator endorsed Trump early and appears to genuinely like him. Sessions may help with the conservative base, and as a senator and former state attorney general is competent.

10. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee. The governor has been supportive of Trump’s candidacy since leaving the race, and his daughter, Sarah, is working as a top aide on the campaign staff. Huckebee is popular among social conservatives, where Trump is weak.

11. South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott. As both a respected conservative and African-American, the senator would help Trump’s electability. With years in federal and state government, he is competent. The only question is whether the two men would be compatible. Scott endorsed Rubio and denounced Trump for not being quick enough in disavowing an endorsement from former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke.

12. Ohio Gov. John Kasich. With Kasich’s sudden departure from the race, despite promising to stay until the convention, perhaps Trump is in negotiations with the swing state governor. Kasich has been critical of the tone and some of the positions Trump has take during the primary race, but has steered clear of the harsh rhetoric of other GOP rivals. Trump never decided to brand Kasich in a negative way either.
Forced to pick among the 12, the names that stick out are Christie, given his long-term friendship with Trump, and governors Scott and Fallin, who appear to fit the running mate bill perfectly.

h/t: Charlotte Observer

Who Will Be Trump’s Running Mate? Looking At A Dozen Candidates, 3 Favorites Emerge

Trump on Nikki Haley as VP: Not happening
USA TODAY‎ - 8 hours ago

Well, Nikki Haley, the feeling is mutual: Donald Trump doesn't want you to be his vice ...

Sessions balks at suggesting Trump's VP pick: 'He needs to get the best person he can'
AL.com‎ - 1 day ago

Himself the subject of vice presidential speculation, U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., declined ...

NOT KASICH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not any of them.

SCOTT BROWN FOR VP

Once again, the VP has to be a person that can also become president if anything should happen to the president. Palin hurt McCain for precisely that reason. In Trumps case, he desires someone who can be a partner with him and possess the skills Trump does not have to navigate congress successfully. We will soon see a few ideas when the man is ready, I am sure.

Are they taking odds in Vegas on this one yet?

Scott Brown VP (or)

Colonel Allen West

What is this idea that Scott Brown would be a good VP pick for Trump? No offense to anyone who thinks it is a good idea, but I don't see it ever.

Originally Posted by joe s

What is this idea that Scott Brown would be a good VP pick for Trump? No offense to anyone who thinks it is a good idea, but I don't see it ever.

Well, first, read this article today about Scott Brown's interview on a radio show about Trump and several issues. Listen to the way he talks, the way he thinks, the way he speaks. Sound familiar or similar? He's Trump II, a quieter, softer version but with steel underneath, just like Trump. Brown says he doesn't even want it, he's endorsing John Thune for VP, which makes me want Scott Brown even more.

Scott Brown: Mitt Romney thinks Trump will beat Clinton
Chris Villani Wednesday, May 04, 2016

(This version corrects an earlier post.)

Former Bay State Sen. Scott Brown said he’s heard Mitt Romney — the most prominent champion of the “Never Trump” movement — believes the presumptive GOP nominee will beat his likely Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.

“Mitt Romney … I’ve heard from many sources that he has said, indirectly or directly to them … if it’s between Hillary and Trump, Trump wins,” Brown said on Boston Herald Radio’s “Morning Meeting” program. “So we’ll see what they do in the privacy of the voting booth.”

Brown was a protege and longtime political ally of Romney, a former Massachusetts governor and the 2012 Republican presidential nominee — until this year, when they have both gone public with wildly divergent views of Trump. Brown, currently a New Hampshire resident, threw his support behind the celebrity billionaire while Romney has been a vehement critic of Trump.

Brown also said he thought it would be in the best interest of current Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker to back Trump — who the governor publicly has said he would not vote for. The former senator, who represented Massachusetts from 2010-2013, told hosts Jaclyn Cashman and Hillary Chabot that the Republican governor would get more attention from the White House if Trump is in the Oval Office.

“If Charlie picks up the phone and calls Hillary, he’s going to get a call like three months later,” Brown said. “If he picks up the phone and calls Trump, he is going to get a call within minutes and that’s going to be helpful when you need those disaster funds or you need those educational funds or special needs funding or you need … some type of consideration for some legislation that’s important in Massachusetts, and that’s the difference. And that’s something he and they are going to have to reconcile.”

During a January stop along the campaign trail, Trump referred to Brown as a potential vice presidential pick who would be “right out of central casting.” Brown, who lost a New Hampshire Senate bid as well as his final Massachusetts race vs. Elizabeth Warren, today shrugged off a question about whether he would be interested in a spot on the GOP ticket and instead endorsed South Dakota U.S. Sen. John Thune for the job.

“I feel very strongly that John would be fantastic,” Brown said. “John’s from a smaller state but I don’t think states matter anymore. What John provides is he will carry the entire central part of this country, the left coast and the right coast, and he is that bridge to the establishment where he is so deeply respected on the left and the right, inside and out.”

Brown also dismissed Warren’s late-night Twitter slams of Trump as “completely irrelevant.. The liberal firebrand took to Twitter last night after Trump clinched the nomination with his Indiana win, firing off a series of anti-Trump tweets saying the billionaire built his campaign on “racism, sexism, and xenophobia,” and proclaiming there is more enthusiasm for Trump within the Ku Klux Klan than the Republican Party.

Warren punctuated her string of nine tweets by saying: “I’m going to fight my heart out to make sure @realDonaldTrump’s toxic stew of hatred & insecurity never reaches the White House.”

“Well, first of all, what she said is completely irrelevant,” Brown fired back this morning. “It doesn’t matter. She had her chance to make a difference. She hadn’t even bothered to endorse anybody so it’s just a continuation of her phoniness and her inability to make decisions.”

Warren’s endorsement was hotly sought after by Democratic contenders Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, but the senator — who enjoys huge popularity among progressives in her party — has declined to back either candidate during the primary season.

Brown added, “All she does is criticize the demean and belittle people instead of working for the people of Massachusetts … she’s been there almost a full term and she done nothing. She’s gotten no bills, no amendments, nothing passed.”

http://www.bostonherald.com/news/loc...l_beat_clinton