Now that we've been told Trump is a lock for the Republican nominee, it's time to start playing "Who's he going to pick for VP?" This year's competition is especially high-stakes, since that person will essentially be the incumbent in four short years. Unless the Democrats swap out Biden for someone irresistible, and soon, Trump's ticket partner has a very real shot at being the 2028 GOP nominee.
Plenty of pundits are arguing that Nikki Haley is Trump's best choice. She checks various demographic boxes, she could help him win over suburban women and independents, and she brings in beaucoup donor bucks. Even people who love Trump and despise Haley have argued that this would be the tactical move.
The Trump campaign poured cold water on the Haley bracket Tuesday evening with a series of emails that went out to its Listserv. The messages did not purport to come from Trump himself, but rather were written as though each was a slide in a PowerPoint called "Why Nikki Haley Is Awful."
The first missive came with the subject line, "Nikki Haley Is Weak On Immigration And Opposes A Border Wall." The email is lengthy and lists, in no particular order, instances of Haley being soft on combatting illegal immigration. Claims include "In March 2017, Haley rejected banning immigrants flooding America from countries like Iran, Syria, and North Korea. She said, that a ban is 'un-American" and "Haley has spoken out against a border wall and has been critical of ending automatic birthright citizenship. She also opposed President Trump’s plan to use drones and planes to secure the southern border."
The next email, titled "Nikki Haley Is Funded By Democrats, Wall Street, & Globalists," ties the candidate to establishment anti-Trumpers. These include big Democrat donor Reid Hoffman, the globalist CEOs of BlackRock and JPMorgan, and unpopular politicians Paul Ryan and Mitt Romney.
The subject of the third dispatch is "Nikki Haley Loves China." It informs us that in 2007, Haley attended the World Economic Forum in Dalian, China, and notes that, 'While representing America as ambassador to the United Nations, Haley described Communist China as being "a really great friend of ours."' The email also zeroes in on the substantial ties Haley developed with China during her time as South Carolina governor.
"Nikki Haley Will Raise Your Taxes" warns the fourth email. Again focusing on her record as governor, it says, "Nikki Haley Pushed For A 60% Increase In The State Gas Tax In South Carolina After Promising For Years That She Would Never Do So" and "Nikki Haley Voted For A 20% Increase In The State Sales Tax In South Carolina," among other pro-tax positions. It also claims Haley and her husband were serial late-filers of their income tax returns.
The fifth and final email reads, simply, "ICYMI: President Trump Calls Nikki Haley Unelectable Over Support For Brutal 23% National Sales Tax." It links to a half-minute video of Trump doing just that in New Hampshire on Tuesday night, fresh from his Iowa blowout.
UNELECTABLE: Nikki Haley supported a BRUTAL 23% national sales tax! pic.twitter.com/iC7okmNg6j
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) January 17, 2024
All of which makes it pretty clear: Donald Trump will not pick Nikki Haley as his running mate. I'm calling it.
But would he pick Vivek Ramaswamy? While the successful businessman may not be everyone's cup of tea as a politician, no one can deny he's highly intelligent. Did he just pull off a brilliant masterstroke by dropping out of the primary race, singing Trump's praises, then appearing at his side during the frontrunner's triumphant New Hampshire stump?
BREAKING: Donald Trump says Vivek Ramaswamy will be "working with us" after Vivek gave a fiery speech in New Hampshire.
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) January 17, 2024
🔥🔥🔥
During his speech, Vivek urged New Hampshire to vote for Trump.
"There is not a better choice left in this race than this man right here. And that is… pic.twitter.com/IVr5gOxw3Y
My colleague, the mighty VodkaPundit, doesn't like the idea of Vivek as Trump's running mate one bit, and he makes solid points in this piece (for our VIPs only): I Know Exactly Who Trump (Shouldn't) Pick for Veep.
But after listening to that barnburner Ramaswamy delivered last night, I could be persuaded.
"There is no path for me to be the next president," the thirty-something entrepreneur said when he dropped out of the primary on Monday. But what if he thought it over and calculated that there was a path for him to be the next vice president — and then the top of the Republican ticket in 2028? What if he went to Trump with that proposal?
If that's his plan, then he has been extremely cunning in getting himself in front of Trump ahead of the curve. Brilliant move, in that case.
EDITOR'S NOTE: An earlier version of this article referred to Nikki Haley as a former governor of North Carolina. We regret the error.
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