Kristi Noem and JD Vance: Donald Trump VP will be his clone

The selection process is unfolding much like a Trump reality show, with candidates auditioning for the job in front of cameras and donors. (Source: Getty Images/Bloomberg)

When it comes to picking a running mate, presidential nominees typically look for someone who can broaden the demographic tent, add policy expertise and serve as an attack dog.

Not Donald Trump. After being burned by Mike Pence, who stood up to him in the final days of his presidency, Trump now wants a sycophantic clone. He wants someone who will defend his bad behaviour, tout his conspiracy theories, and amplify his lies.

Whomever the pick is, he (it’s likely to be a man) won’t be a guardrail. Instead, they will be a green light for Trump’s authoritarian and anti-democratic agenda. That such a litmus test exists for a Trump vice president should be a red flag for voters.

The selection process is unfolding much like a Trump reality show, with candidates auditioning for the job in front of cameras and donors. Contestants gathered at Mar-a-Largo last weekend to perform for Trump and his allies, with the former president assessing them as if they were pageant contestants. Then they dutifully hit the Sunday talk shows, spreading lies about the 2020 election, stoking fears about 2024, and bashing President Joe Biden, all for an audience of one.

They know what’s required of them.

They must never say that Biden won the 2020 election fairly.

They must continue to sow doubt in the voting process by suggesting that the November election might not be fair either.

And they must downplay the Jan 6 insurrection.

The ability to be a silver-tongued liar will be key to a contestant’s success. And having establishment stature and being telegenic will go a long way with Trump, who is both a classist and a lookist.

Looking the part helps lend credibility to the lies and conspiracy theories.

Trump will demand unconditional fealty — as he does from all his allies, yet rarely offers in return.

So far, the list of contestants who have shown that they are willing to say and do anything to please Trump includes Representatives Elise Stefanik and Byron Donalds, Senators Tim Scott, Marco Rubio and JD Vance and Governors Doug Burgum and Kristi Noem. (Noem, who in her memoir
admitted to shooting and killing a puppy, seems to be off the list according to Trump allies.)

Given Trump’s proclivities, Burgum, Rubio and Scott are the most likely front-runners.

Burgum, a mild-mannered billionaire, has slammed Biden as weak. He notably refers to Trump as “President” and Biden as “Joe Biden” as a way of refusing to acknowledge Biden’s 2020 win. He’s also falsely claimed that there were widespread voting irregularities in 2020. Being a rich, bland senior citizen helps the North Dakota governor — Trump seems uninterested in empowering a successor, let alone someone who is visibly much younger than he is.

Burgum, 67, would essentially be an echo of Trump, an older, rich White man. But he would also easily fade into the background and not upstage him — another Trump requirement.

There has been much speculation about whether Trump should pick a woman or an African American or Latino running mate. Steve Bannon, for instance, has advocated picking a woman, a choice that could help Trump in that demographic. But the pickings are slim. Stefanik likely lacks the stature Trump seeks, but she is fully aboard the MAGA train, referring to the Jan. 6 defendants as hostages.

Rubio, whom Trump derided as “Little Marco” in 2016, could help Trump widen his appeal among Latino voters. He’s a smooth but sometimes
robotic talker, with a fluency in foreign policy. In  2016 he called Trump a con artist with tiny hands, but he’s now one of the former president’sbiggest defenders. Rubio, seems loath to go all in on MAGA — he parries questions about Trump’s beliefs and actions by turning it back on Democrats. The hesitancy has surely been noticed by Trump. A Floridian like Trump, Rubio also has what Trump calls “this residency problem,” a legal headache that the Trump team might want to avoid given all the legal problems he already has.

Scott remains a favourite and could help grow Trump’s support among African Americans, particularly Black men. The question for Scott is how easily and smoothly can he lie? A devout Christian, Scott’s first ad for his failed presidential campaign featured him sitting in church holding his Bible and praying. Asked repeatedly whether he would accept the results of the 2024 election as he did in 2020 — no matter who wins — Scott pointedly refused to answer. He awkwardly ducked a question that should have a simple answer. But in Trump’s race for the No. 2 slot, contestants must speedily race to the bottom, embracing an alternate reality to please him.

At the fundraising event where Scott appeared, Trump had this to say about Donalds, who like Scott would possibly help with Black voters, though as a two-term congressman, he seems an unlikely pick.

“I like diversity. Diversité as you would say,” Trump said according to a recording obtained by Axios. “I like diversité. [Donors] worth millions of dollars...all want a piece of Byron."

It is plausible that Trump will break with his preference for surrounding himself with White men and choose someone who is “diverse.” But even if Trump picks someone who doesn’t look like him, they will sound like him and be his primary helpmate in radically altering America’s democracy.

Credit: Bloomberg