Both Democrats and Republicans are holding their breath, patiently waiting for GOP nominee Donald Trump to reveal who he wants to be his running mate come November.
On his “short list” of potentials are Senators Marco Rubio, Fla., J.D. Vance, OH and Tim Scott from South Carolina, according to Forbes. Although the former president has not decided when he will announce his candidate for VP, many in the Trump campaign say he is close to finalizing his decision.
Trump’s former national security advisor, John Bolton recently appeared on CNN’s “The Source” to predict how the former president will select his running mate.
According to Bolton, Trump is only asking two questions: “Do you think the 2020 election was stolen?” and “If I told you to do what I told [Vice President] Mike Pence to do on Jan. 6, would you do it?’”
Whether Bolton meant his comments as fact or just prediction, social media and media outlets are perceiving it as fact.
Senator Scott sat down in an exclusive 33-minute interview with Tatsha Robertson, Editor-in-Chief of the Root, and said rumors are “totally false.” According to Scott, “those questions aren’t being asked…” and he continued to say “President Trump has never asked those questions of any of the contenders” for vice president. Scott also suggested these questions wouldn’t even matter to the overall selection of Trump’s running mate.
When asked if he believed the 2020 election was stolen, Scott replied “Vice President Pence did the right thing.” He continued to say Pence confirmed the 2020 election “because it was an election that needed to be certified.”
As the first Black Republican Senator elected in the South since Reconstruction, he is arguably the most prominent Black Republican in recent years. Even though Scott has been criticized for his close relationship with the Trump Administration and even ran against the former president during the Republican primary, he continued during the interview to speak highly of Trump and Trump’s time in office.
When asked about Trump’s racially-motivated comments, the senator turned the tables and pointed to comments made by Biden and Democrats. He also claimed that the former president has done more for Black Americans than Biden or his administration. (Come back tomorrow to read more about Tim Scott’s comments to the Black Community)