OPINION: This article contains commentary which reflects the author's opinion
If Donald Trump does run for president in 2024, some are suggesting he may ditch Mike Pence and choose another possible rising name in the Republican Party to be his running mate.
So who might Trump choose to be his running mate? Some are suggesting it could be South Dakota GOP Gov. Kristi Noem.
Bloomberg reporter Jennifer Jacobs published a report citing two unnamed advisers close to Trump who say he is leaning towards picking a strong woman for the possible VP candidate job.
“Donald Trump is telling allies he’s strongly considering another run for president in 2024 — and close advisers want him to choose someone other than former Vice President Mike Pence for his ticket,” Bloomberg reported, attributing to sources “familiar with the discussions.”
"Trump’s advisers have discussed identifying a Black or female running mate for his next run, and three of the people familiar with the matter said Pence likely won’t be on the ticket."https://t.co/sPacX6ZBWl via @bpolitics
— Maureen Groppe (@mgroppe) March 4, 2021
The Bloomberg report vaguely suggests Trump’s recent endorsement of South Carolina Senator Tim Scott as a possible sign of a future veep candidate selection, because he is “the only Black Republican in the U.S. Senate.”
But there is another name that has more clearly surfaced in the reported vice-presidential candidacy talks.
“Two advisers have suggested Trump consider South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem,” the sources reportedly told Bloomberg. “Donald Trump Jr. and his girlfriend, Kimberly Guilfoyle, are hosting a fundraiser for Noem on Friday at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort and home in Palm Beach. The former president is planning to make an appearance, people familiar with the matter said.”
Governor Noem is a champion for many Trump supporters and Republicans for her defiance of intense pressure to implement unlawful coronavirus lockdowns in her state.
While South Dakota ranks eighth in deaths per capita attributed to COVID-19, there are a number of states with lockdowns that rank ahead of her state: New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut being among them.
CPAC 2021 in full swing, with Mike Pompeo, Kristi Noem, Marco Rubio among the speakershttps://t.co/3VhxO4tNSy
— Fox News (@FoxNews) February 27, 2021
Kristi Noem’s unwavering defense of Americans’ rights, when governors were caving left and right around the country, has nonetheless earned a lot of people’s respect and devotion.
There’s plenty of time to speculate over that, but Trump did make some very interesting comments last weekend at CPAC.
“I will be actively working to elect strong, tough, and smart Republican leaders,” Trump claimed.
“Now more than ever is the time for tough, strong, and energetic Republican leaders who have spines of steel. We need strong leadership. We cannot have leaders who show more passion for condemning their fellow Americans than they have ever shown for standing up to Democrats, the media, and the radicals who want to turn America into a socialist country,” he added.
Trump then revealed the names on his “revenge list”:
“The Democrats don’t have grandstanders like Mitt Romney, little Ben Sasse, Richard Burr, Bill Cassidy, Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Pat Toomey,” Trump stated.
“And in the house, Tom Rice, South Carolina, Adam Kinzinger, Dan Newhouse, Anthony Gonzalez, that’s another beauty, Fred Upton, Jaime Herrera Beutler, Peter Meijer, John Katko, David Valadao, and of course the warmonger, a person that loves seeing our troops fighting, Liz Cheney, how about that?” he added.
Trump’s comments come after he slammed “fake news” reports back in January that he was planning to put his name behind the “Patriot Party” that was filed at the time.
In a statement, Trump teased a new slogan that shows he will still be moving his “Make America Gret Again” movement forward and is going with the phrase “Save America.”