Donald Trump’s former campaign manager and advisor Kellyanne Conway made an interesting prediction about the 2024 Republican ticket. Conway appeared with Sen. Marsha Blackburn on the latter’s YouTube channel, and they spoke about the Republican Party’s prospects in 2024.
“I think if President Trump runs again in 2024 or whoever the [Republican] nominee is, it’s either going to be a woman if he decides not to run, or he’ll seriously consider selecting a woman as his running mate,” Conway predicted.
Conway was quick to assure Senator Blackburn that it wouldn’t be an affirmative action pick.
“And not just a woman for woman’s sake because he’s never done that. A woman because he recognizes that we’re one-half of the country, more than one-half of the country, and more than one-half of the electorate, and we have to restore faith that women leaders in government can get the job done.”
Trump is widely expected to be running again in 2024, and him picking a female running make would make a lot of sense. Conway believes that a Republican woman vice president could easily be a better leader than Kamala Harris, whose approval ratings are even worse than her boss, Joe Biden’s.
Currently, Harris’ RealClearPolitics average favorable rating is 36.8%, and her unfavorable is 53.2%, giving her a spread of -16.4. Joe Biden’s spread is currently -13.7.
Historically speaking, Harris’ unpopularity is genuinely historic. She is the only vice president to poll underwater within the first year. Mike Pence, Joe Biden, Dick Cheney, Al Gore, Dan Quayle, George H.W. Bush, and even Walter Mondale had higher ratings.
The pair discussed how Kamala Harris has blamed racism and sexism for her poor performance and dismissed that excuse as garbage.
“When I hear her blame sexism and racism, I have a very easy response,” Conway said. “It’s called eyesight and hearing — not sexism and racism. People are hearing her, and they are watching what she is doing and, more importantly, what she is not doing.”
The last time a Republican ticket had a woman on it was in 2008 when Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) picked Gov. Sarah Palin (R-Alaska) as his running mate. The media widely mocked her in a way that they never did Kamala Harris. That’s because Palin gave John McCain’s presidential campaign a massive jolt of optimism and momentum that he couldn’t generate on his own. She was a young, popular governor and threatened the Democrats’ lust for power. She had to be destroyed, and sexist attacks weren’t off the table. She gave an incredible speech during the Republican National Convention and exceeded expectations when she debated Joe Biden, a 35-year veteran in the U.S. Senate at the time. She proved herself to be a formidable candidate for vice president, but the Democrats and the media typecast her as a clueless dummy.
If Trump does run in 2024 and picks a woman to join his ticket, she’ll be easily treated much worse than Sarah Palin was. Palin’s treatment by the media was grossly unfair. Was she entirely ready for the national spotlight? Perhaps not. If Trump picks a woman running mate, he’ll have to pick someone more experienced than Palin (or Barack Obama) was at the time.
Without a doubt, Trump’s running mate selection in 2024 will be the most critical decision of his future campaign. Whoever they are, they’ll be carrying the torch for the GOP after Trump.
