Donald Trump’s choice of Nikki Haley to be his vice president has been the subject of much discussion in recent months. This idea is not very popular among conservatives. Fair enough, speculation was sparked by the fact the campaign of the former president refused to dismiss the idea while slamming Vivek Ramaswamy. Something is going on.
Is there another candidate? According to a recent report, Trump has seriously considered Rep. Elise Stefanik(R-NY) as a candidate for the position.
Scoop: Donald Trump is seriously considering House GOP Conference chair @EliseStefanik as his VP. He’s been mulling the idea privately with allies, raving about Stefanik’s loyalty.
Our exclu on the veepstakes. w/@katiadoyl @scottwongDC https://t.co/HBcdhhRq7i
— Brian Schwartz (@schwartzbCNBC) January 17, 2024
According to a person who was present at the event, Trump stated that “She is a killer”.
Eight people with knowledge of the matter have said that Trump and an increasing number of his allies are now looking more closely at Stefanik to be a running mate. This includes people in Trump’s circle, Stefanik fundraisers, and former Trump Administration officials.
(…)
Steve Bannon was Trump’s White House chief strategist and architect of the 2016 campaign strategy.
A Republican campaign operative stated, “If you are Trump, you would want someone loyal before all else.” “Especially because he views Mike Pence’s sin as fatal.”
We don’t trash Republicans. We handle disagreements, which are common in the GOP, by analyzing them, rather than calling people names. This is to say Stefanik may have a problem with her record, not who she is. What is on paper, stays on paper.
Would someone really prefer Stefanik as vice president if they didn’t want Haley? She is just as pro-Ukraine (and has supported all aid packages passed to date), and her voting records are even more liberal when it comes to social issues and expenditure. Stefanik has a Liberty Score of “F”. Her Heritage Score is 56 percent. She’s not just a newly reformed conservative, with an average Republican representative rating of 85.
Stefanik’s contribution to the team is another question. She is in a state where she will not be competitive for 2024. (Any suggestion that the opposite, as in 2020, would be delusional. She’s not liked by the conservative base, but she also doesn’t appeal Trump skeptics because of her close ties to Trump in the past few years. What additional voters does she bring along? It would be odd to pick a vice president that adds nothing electorally to a ticket.
It’s not that Stefanik never had a moment. She questioned two university leaders on the far left about antisemitism in a hearing, including Harvard’s Claudine gay (who ended up being fired by a plagiarism scandal). She is also facing censure from the Democrats (which she will never get) over accusations that she “supported” the “insurrectionists” of January 6th.
Congressman Dan Goldman will introduce today a resolution that censures Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, for conduct unbecoming a member in Congress. This includes her constant support of the insurrectionists responsible for the attack on United States Capitol building on January 6, 2021.
In my opinion, making Rep. Dan Goldman cry (D-NY), is always positive. But is that enough? While most Republicans are not without redeeming qualities in their own right, as a whole, Stefanik becoming vice president could be controversial and cause more division than unity.
Is it just a blip or does Trump really consider this? Who knows? I think his decision to choose the winner will change every hour. And before it’s all over, there could be more surprises.
