Donald Trump and Joe Biden are set to square off on the debate stage on Thursday night, and according to the former president, the next Republican vice president will be in attendance.
NBC News writes that the former president intends to have his running mate in tow in Atlanta.
Former President Donald Trump said Saturday that he knows who his vice presidential pick will be — and gave a clue about his or her likely debate night plans.
Asked by NBC News at a Philadelphia campaign stop whether he has decided on his vice presidential pick, Trump responded, “In my mind, yeah,” adding that the person will “most likely” be at Thursday’s debate against President Joe Biden.
“They’ll be there,” he continued. “I think we have a lot of people coming.”
Trump said “nobody knows” his choice yet. NBC News has previously reported that Trump is zeroing in on Gov. Doug Burgum of North Dakota, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio and Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida as possible top contenders.
The announcement by Trump comes on the heels of another NBC News report revealing that the GOP frontrunner has narrowed his VP list to three people, Ohio Senator J.D. Vance, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, and Florida Senator Marco Rubio.
Rubio, however, remains the least likely of the three, sources told NBC because of “doubts about his enthusiasm for the job and concerns about navigating a constitutional hang-up that would require Trump or Rubio to establish residency in another state have persisted in ways that could jeopardize his chances.”
The outlet noted that “the campaign’s VP deliberations have been closely guarded and, given Trump’s love for the element of surprise, could veer abruptly in other directions.
‘As President Trump has said himself, the top criteria in selecting a vice president is a strong leader who will make a great president for eight years after his next four-year term concludes,’ senior Trump campaign adviser Brian Hughes said in a statement. ‘But anyone telling you they know who or when President Trump will choose his VP is lying unless that person is named Donald J. Trump.’
Internally, a key point of tension and indecision is balancing the desire for a running mate who is non-threatening against the desire for someone who also can be considered the future of Trump’s movement, a source familiar with the search said. That tension, the source added, runs throughout the campaign, including with Trump.”
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