Why It Might be Ramaswamy

 

Trump says he has already chosen his VP.

I had thought it might be Ron DeSantis; or Tucker Carlson. But here are some reasons it might be Vivek Ramaswamy.

1. Glenn Beck reports that Trump phoned him for advice, and Beck suggested Ramaswamy. What sounds significant is Trump’s response: “That’s what everyone is telling me.” So Trump wanted advice, and this is the advice he’s been getting.

2. Trump has said his choice will not be a big surprise. Since everyone has been telling him Ramaswamy, and there were chants of “VP” at the rally where Ramaswamy endorsed him, this points to Ramaswamy. 

3. Reports were that in 2016, Trump wanted Newt Gingrich. He took Pence to satisfy party bigwigs. So he prefers someone like Newt Gingrich, and this time, owning the party, he has a free hand. Gingrich himself is too old; but who is most like Gingrich? The striking thing about Gingrich is that he was, like Trump, a bulldog with hostile questioners. Ramaswamy wrestles biased interviewers to the mat the same way Gingrich did. Being a master rhetorician –that is, salesman—Trump no doubt values the art and understands its power. Ramaswamy has the gift.

4. Business execs have a tendency to groom younger men who remind them of themselves. Trump is of that culture and probably fond of the mentorship role—remember The Apprentice. Ramaswamy fills that bill better than any other high-profile contender: a fellow salesman, a fellow entrepreneur. He is, conveniently, not as rich as Trump.

5. Limited legally to one term, Trump will be thinking of someone to carry on his programme after he leaves. Ramaswamy has run on being 100% MAGA. Other obvious names might turn out to be a cuckoo’s egg in his nest by comparison.

6. Indeed, Trump had a problem with appointees turning against him or subverting him in his first term. Most notably, his last VP pick, Pence. He logically ought, as a result, to put a high premium on loyalty and ideological compatibility.

7. It fits his brand, and his pledge to drain the swamp, to choose a non-politician. Choosing a businessman instead reduces the risk that they are compromised by the deep state and the beltway.

8. Trump said he’d made his pick about at the same time  Ramaswamy dropped out and endorsed him. Suggesting that event may have allowed him to make his pick. It was at that point that Ramaswamy became available.

What do you think? There’s a comment option. Use it.