MILWAUKEE — Former President Trump spent months building suspense around his choice of running mate, teasing a long short list, narrowing it down and then teasing an “Apprentice-style reveal at the Republican National Convention.”
On Monday, Trump briefed Senator Marco Rubio (R-Florida) and North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum (R) to inform them that they would not join the ticket.
Trump called Senator JD Vance, the first-term senator, to offer him the position of vice president. Twenty minutes later, Trump informed the world.
“After long deliberation and reflection, and considering the tremendous talents of many others, I have decided that the best suited person to assume the office of Vice President of the United States is Senator JD Vance of the Great State of Ohio,” Trump wrote on Twitter . Social Truth.
Trump publicly acknowledged that he was considering Vance, Rubio, Burgum and Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.). In recent days, Trump has described Rubio’s Florida residency as an issue that could cause problems because of constitutional rules surrounding a slate of candidates from the same state. He also called Burgum’s signing of a strict abortion law as governor potentially problematic.
Vance has traveled with Trump regularly in recent months, dispelling rumors about joining the Republican ticket while showing why he could be a valuable running mate.
The senator attended Trump’s criminal trial in Manhattan in May to show that the attack on the prosecution was political and was a near-constant presence on television while Trump was in court. The former president was later convicted of 34 criminal counts of falsifying business records.
Vance joined Trump at rallies this year, participated in fundraisers and helped connect the former president with deep-pocketed Silicon Valley donors such as tech entrepreneur David Sacks. Trump interviewed supporters at a fundraiser in Ohio last month about whether he should choose the senator as his running mate.
Driving Vance’s cause throughout the veepstakes were high-level allies in Trump’s orbit with significant reach.
Tucker Carlson, the former Fox News host, was a fan of Vance throughout the process. Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, was also a Vance booster. And perhaps most notably, Donald Trump Jr. pushed for his father to pick the Ohio senator.
“I think everyone knows I’ve been talking about this a lot,” Trump Jr. said Monday on the convention floor. “I couldn’t be happier.”
When Vance burst onto the national scene following the publication of his memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy,” he was not the vociferous Trump ally he is today. Vance called Trump “harmful,” “an idiot” and a “cultural hero” who offered “a simple solution to every complex problem.”
But when Vance ran for a Senate seat, he managed to secure Trump’s endorsement despite his previous comments. Aides to both men said it was very important that Vance was open about his evolution toward the former president, acknowledging in interviews that he was “wrong” about Trump early in his presidency.
“Like some others, J.D. Vance may have said some not-so-nice things about me in the past, but he understands now, and I’ve seen it in spades,” Trump said in April 2022, when he supported Vance in a bitter primary fight. .
Since then, Vance has become one of Trump’s staunchest defenders in the Senate, giving combative interviews on networks including CNN and CBS and promoting the “America First” ideology that Trump espoused while in the White House. He has been among the most outspoken Republican lawmakers opposing continued U.S. aid to Ukraine, questioning how Kiev can truly win the war against Russia.
“In politics, they have a lot of synergies and places where they have common ground,” said a Vance ally. “I think that’s the obvious one.”
The Vance ally also argued that Trump appreciates that the senator “is not afraid. He’s not your typical, ‘I’ve got to figure out where I’m supposed to be on something’ politician.”
One Republican official told The Hill that Vance articulates a populist agenda “as well as anyone I’ve met in the country.”
Republican delegates formally nominated Vance as their vice presidential nominee Monday afternoon. He entered the convention hall, accompanied by his wife, Usha, to the tunes of “JD” as a selection of edgy songs played over the Fiserv Forum speakers: “America First” by Merle Haggard.
“Why don’t we free the United States? We are the ones who need this most”, said the song. “Let the rest of the world help us for a change, and let’s rebuild America first.”
Mychael Schnell contributed.
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
