Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday confirmed a list of vice presidential contenders to join his campaign but made it abundantly clear that his running mate will play second fiddle to his leadership.
Trump singled out Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), a long-rumored running mate candidate, as a top person to join his 2024 ticket.
“He’s been so great. He’s been such a great advocate,” Trump told Fox News‘s Laura Ingraham during a town hall event Tuesday evening. “He has been much better for me than he was for himself. I watched his campaign, and he doesn’t like talking about himself, but boy, does he talk about Trump.”
Scott ran against Trump for the GOP presidential nomination but dropped out of the race in November. He would later endorse Trump days before the New Hampshire primary last month, in a major snub of former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.
The Palmetto State senator was in attendance at the Fox News town hall with Trump in Greenville. He is set to appear with Trump on Friday during another South Carolina appearance.
Other vice presidential contenders include former Republican presidential candidates Vivek Ramaswamy and Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), who also appeared in South Carolina earlier Tuesday. Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL), former Democratic Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, and Gov. Kristi Noem (R-SD) are also among the running mate contenders Trump affirmed on Tuesday.
“The one thing that always surprises me is that the VP choice has absolutely no impact,” Trump said when asked about the timing of his running mate decision. “It’s whoever the president is.”
Yet Trump quickly conceded the role was “a very important position.”
“And honestly, all of those people are good, they’re all good, they’re all solid,” Trump said of the list of Republicans who could join his ticket. “And I always say I want people with common sense because there’s so many things happening in this country that don’t make sense.”
Watch:
🚨BREAKING: Trump confirms Vivek is on his VP shortlist: “Yeah… All of those people are good. They’re all solid.” pic.twitter.com/liUb3Ksgnz
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) February 21, 2024
