The Trump Veep Stakes

 

No Noem

Trump is cannily keeping speculation going over who he will choose for his running mate. It’s like The Apprentice. Gets a lot of earned media. 

Who would I pick if I were Trump?

Best pick: Ron DeSantis. He has the executive skills to carry forward Trump’s legacy four years from now. I think Trump is right that the VP pick doesn’t move polls much. The more important thing is to groom someone who could take the torch if and when it is passed on.

Next: RFK Jr. Could blow a permanent hole in the Democratic Party. That could be an important legacy too. It would also be a unifying pick, and America needs that. I believe Kennedy has already been offered the slot, however, and has turned it down.

Next: Tulsi Gabbard. Again, pulls in independents and independent-minded Democrats. Also a unifying pick. 

Next: Vivek Ramaswamy. Like a younger Trump; therefore, good for passing on the legacy in four years. He’s great at getting out the message, great in tussles with the media. After four years as understudy, I think he could handle the presidential job. 

Next: Tucker Carlson. A straight talker; having him on the ticket would help reassure the public that the corrupt cartel is no longer in control. The only problem is, I think he might be of greater value as a media voice than silenced as VP.

Next: J.D. Vance. A voice for all those overlooked and neglected working class whites.

Next: Ben Carson. He lacks political experience, but projects a sense of being utterly sincere, calm and responsible, without being weak. He does, to my mind, give off presidential vibes.

I could get really excited about any of those picks. Below this level, I would feel at least a twinge of regret at lost opportunity. The current rumours are that it will be Marco Rubio. That makes sense in terms of cementing the support of Hispanic voters, but that also means Rubio is being picked largely because of his race. Bad practice, bad example for the nation. There is also something about Rubio that makes it hard to picture him as president. Some people got it, some don’t. He has a bit of a reputation for pandering, too. 

Christie Noem is surely definitely out by now. I would never have been happy with her selection. She doesn’t have the resume, and would only be on the ticket because she’s a woman. Same with Kari Lake.

Doug Burgum? Why is he being mentioned?  He has no charisma, and is not eloquent either. Make him chief of staff, maybe.

Tim Scott? Again, lacking in charisma, and like Rubio, he does not have the presidential aura. He feels like an empty suit.

Of course, there are other possibilities. But these are the names most commonly mentioned.

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.

Vivek Ramaswamy

 

Vivek Ramaswamy is getting some traction as a presidential candidate. 

This my not mean much. Most times, dark horses rise and fall in the course of the presidential season. Herman Cain, Howard Dean, Michelle Bachman, Pete Buttigeig, Ben Carson; all had their day.

But just in case, it seems worth pointing out that some of his positions are alarming.

He wants to impose a “civics test” to allow 18 to 24-year-olds to vote. This is plainly discriminatory: the right to vote is inherent and follows from every man’s right to decide what is best for himself. Moreover, the content of any “civics test” could be skewed to exclude voters of a given opinion. No government should be allowed to choose its own voters.

Ramaswamy also wants to extend the use of executive orders. This subverts the legislative branch, reduces checks and balances, and moves the US in the direction of a dictatorship, if an elected dictatorship.

I imagine Ramaswamy is well-intentioned, but some of his instincts are bad.