During his term as president, Donald Trump had Mike Pence as his vice president. Now, amid rising tensions between the two Republican presidential candidates, it's likely that Trump will pick a new vice presidential running mate for the 2024 election.
Who could be the chosen one? Trump is ready to hold auditions.
What Happened: The first 2024 Presidential Election Republican debate is scheduled for Aug. 23 in Wisconsin, an event that will air on Fox Corporation FOXFOXA unit Fox News and video platform Rumble Inc RUM, which secured the streaming rights.
For months, Trump has hinted at skipping the first debate, due to a sizeable lead he has in many national polls of Republican voters.
While he isn’t likely to participate in the first Republican presidential debate, Trump might be intently watching to see what candidates say.
"Let them debate so I can see who I MIGHT consider for Vice President," Trump shared on his Truth Social platform Monday.
The post by Trump comes after he recently told conservative radio host John Fredericks that he had not made a decision on joining the debate, as he referred to Fox as a “hostile network” with “very hostile people.”
“Why would I do that?” Trump rhetorically said when asked about participating in the debate. “I’m thinking about it, I haven’t made a final decision.”
Trump said that, along with Ron DeSantis falling in the polls, candidates like Asa Hutchinson and Nikki Haley haven’t done well in the polls either.
“Others haven’t caught on, well-known names haven’t caught on,” he said.
Trump reminded listeners that Ronald Reagan previously skipped a debate and said that he has little to gain from participating if he chooses to do so.
“My lead is bigger than anyone’s lead,” Trump said.
Several candidates have criticized Trump for his possible absence from the debate.
“Obviously, he’s afraid,” Chris Christie said previously. “He’s afraid to get on stage against people who are serious. And I’m sorry to see that he’s afraid of it.”
DeSantis spoke out about candidates like Trump skipping the primary debates.
“Nobody is entitled to this nomination,” DeSantis previously told conservative radio host Howie Carr. “I’ll be at all the debates because the American people deserve to hear from us directly about our vision for the country and about how we’re going to be able to beat [President] Joe Biden.”
Related Link: Trump Dominates GOP Poll With 43-Point Lead As DeSantis Falters, New Challenger Surfaces
Why It’s Important: Trump’s decision to potentially forgo the debate coincides with the scheduled trial on Aug.14 related to the charges he faces concerning classified documents found at his Mar-a-Lago resort.
With many candidates running in the 2024 presidential election for the GOP nomination, there is the potential that Trump picks a candidate who drops out of the race. With this idea in mind, Trump could be watching the debate to see who has the most positive things to say about the former president.
Many of the GOP presidential candidates have been reluctant to speak out against Trump on topics like his indictments, instead using it as context to attack the Democratic Party.
The first Republican primary debate has qualifying criteria that include positions in polls and fundraising figures. Fox News reports that Trump, Haley, DeSantis, Vivek Ramaswamy, Tim Scott, Christie and Doug Burgum have all qualified.
Several of the debate participants have previously shut down the notion of being the vice president for Trump.
Christie was asked if he would consider being Trump's running mate during an interview on Newsmax recently, and simply replied with a “No.”
“I spoke to Mike Pence, the job doesn’t sound like it was too great,” Christie added.
DeSantis also seemed to dismiss the notion of being vice president under Trump.
“I don’t think so, I’m not a number two guy,” DeSantis said on the radio show “Wisconsin Right Now” previously.
DeSantis also said he would rather stay on as a governor over becoming the vice president, as the vice president “doesn’t really have any authority.”
Trump recently told Fredericks that he thinks DeSantis should drop out of the 2024 election race “for the good of the party.”
“He could have waited and would have been odds-on favorite [in] 2028,” Trump said.
In addition to prospective vice presidential candidates from the pool of 2024 presidential hopefuls, Newsweek also listed Kari Lake, Byron Donalds, Nancy Mace and Francis Suarez as names linked to becoming Trump’s running mate.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene has also thrown her hat in the ring to be Trump’s vice presidential pick previously.
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