Posted on 03/11/2026 2:19:20 AM PDT by RoosterRedux
President Donald Trump reportedly asked two dozen donors at Mar-a-Lago what they thought of Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio for 2028, with the crowd applauding louder for Rubio.
What The $373 Million Market Says
On Polymarket’s 2028 Republican nominee market, Vance leads at 39% to Rubio’s 26%.
But the trajectory favors Rubio. His odds have nearly tripled since December. The market has drawn $373 million in total volume.
On Kalshi, the gap is narrower: Vance at 38%, Rubio at 32%.
Speaking to governors in February, Trump called Vance “a brilliant guy” but added “we gotta slow him down just a little bit.” He described Rubio as the “opposite extreme,” adding “Marco does it with a velvet glove, but it’s still a kill.”
Foreign, Not Domestic Policy Rules
Trump’s second term has been dominated by foreign policy, and that’s been Rubio’s stage.
The WSJ reported Rubio was physically at Mar-a-Lago for both the Iran strikes and the Maduro capture. Vance beamed in virtually both times.
On the Iran operation, Trump said Vance was “maybe less enthusiastic about going, but he was quite enthusiastic.”
But popular conservative podcast host Patrick Bet-David said he recently surveyed his audience and Rubio came out as the clear favorite.
“Every chance I get, I bring up Marco,” he said.
The MAGA Civil War
Vance’s camp is fighting back. Donald Trump Jr. alleged in January that right-wing influencers are being paid to attack the vice president online, calling it “arguably the most obvious and flagrant operation I’ve ever seen in the history of social media.”
Palantir Technologies Inc PLTR CEO Alex Karp and ConocoPhillips COP CEO Ryan Lance attended a Vance fundraiser that netted roughly $6 million.
(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...
Dear FRiends,
We need your continuing support to keep FR funded. Your donations are our sole source of funding. No sugar daddies, no advertisers, no paid memberships, no commercial sales, no gimmicks, no tax subsidies. No spam, no pop-ups, no ad trackers.
If you enjoy using FR and agree it's a worthwhile endeavor, please consider making a contribution today:
Click here: to donate by Credit Card
Or here: to donate by PayPal
Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794
Thank you very much and God bless you,
Jim
I have to rethink that...in the event...the VP has to step into the shoes of the President...I do want Vance...so I have conflicting feelings.
Pondering
Interesting that the President is even asking.
That is a terrible way to treat people.
?
Dream ticket ?
Homan Rubio
Nearly impossible sell to a little less than half the nation but if it came to be it sure would be something to see
Rubio has shown that he’s all serious on America.
The VP, whether Vance likes it or not, is a position where you do the will of the President and you can’t necessarily show your own convictions. It’s a convenient place for somebody less convicted than Trump or Rubio could hide ill intentions.
That’s not an accusation against Vance, it’s just reality,
Voters would pick Vance.
Rubio has supported the tariffs 110%. Globalist?? He’s Secretary of State. That’s his job.
I don’t trust Rubio on tariffs. He’s an ex-Senate club member. OTH I TRUST Vance.
Not sure of your definition of a globalist. Rubio is America First...all the way.
You can’t serve VP twice. It has the same restrictions as the President.
Vance, if Rubio became the candidate, would have to either accept a cabinet position or he’d be bound for the Senate. I’d vote for him for Senator. He’s proven his worth in my opinion.
VP has the same restrictions as the President EXCEPT The VP has no term limits...
I didn’t know that. I suppose, in retrospect, he could be appointed to VP as well instead of having to run.
In 2016 Rubio said this which revealed he is not really MAGA.
“We are all frustrated with what China is doing. I think we need to be very careful with tariffs, and here's why. China doesn't pay the tariff, the buyer pays the tariff: it gets passed on in the price to the consumer. So I think the better approach, the best thing we can do to protect ourselves against China economically is to make our economy stronger. It begins with tax reform. It continues with regulatory reform.”
Rubio is stuck in the 20th century when it comes to economics. Unfortunately a lot of Free Traitors like Rubio because of that.
Ideally, in that case, I’d chose Vance for President and Rubio for VP.
Stasis is deadly for a political career. It would cancel Vance, I think, if he had more than two terms as VP.
Squishy Republic posters want Rubio. That tells you Vance is the right man.
It is.
You don’t run for VP...the Presidential candidate picks his running mate aka VP.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.