Former President Donald Trump revealed two potential picks for his vice presidential running mate on Sunday, emphasizing that his running mate in the 2024 presidential election would have to be someone who would make “a good president.”
In an interview on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures” with host Maria Bartiromo, the former president was asked what his “criteria” was for choosing a running mate.
“Always, it’s got to be one thing. It’s got to be who would be a good president,” Trump said. “Obviously, you always have to think that because in case of emergency. Things happen, right? No matter who you are, things happen. It’s got to be number one.”
In response to Bartiromo pushing for a direct answer from Trump regarding his choice for a running mate, Trump said the Republican Party has “a lot of really good people.” Asked whether he had made an official decision regarding a vice presidential candidate, Trump said he has “a lot of good ideas” but that there was “no reason to do that quickly.” The former president explained that it will be “a while” before he announces his running mate in November’s election.
While Trump did not announce who his running mate would be, he mentioned both Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Governor Kristi Noem (R-S.D.) during his interview with Bartiromo.
“I speak to everybody,” Trump told Baartiromo. “I called Tim Scott … and I said, ‘You’re a much better candidate for me than you are for yourself.’ When I watched Tim, he was fine, he was good, but he was very low-key, et cetera, et cetera.”
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Trump said that while Scott was “low-key” prior to the suspension of his presidential campaign, the Republican senator has been a “real tiger” on behalf of Trump’s campaign. Pointing to Scott’s recent endorsement, Trump said, “He’s been incredible, and others have too.”
In response to Bartiromo questioning whether Scott could be Trump’s potential running mate, the former president said, “It could be. It could be a lot of people.” While Trump highlighted the senator’s recent support on the campaign trail, he indicated that he did not want anyone to take any “inference” from his comments regarding his choice for a running mate.
Trump also mentioned Noem’s support during Sunday’s interview, saying, “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.”
