Trump: Rubio not under consideration for VP Pick

CNN ^ | 5/16/16 | Sophie Taum and David Mark

[ek_hornbeck]

I certainly hope this is true. Almost all of the names Ben Carson "leaked" as VP picks were disappointments, but Rubio is by far the worst of the lot. If Trump decides that he absolutely needs an establishment VP to get the party behind him and to be able to work with Congress, I'd even prefer Kasich to Rubio. At least Kasich can help deliver a big swing state (Rubio would be a hindrance rather than an asset, in Florida), and unlike Rubio, he had a track record of actually legislating and governing rather than just using his office as a launchpad for the Presidency.

[Cowboy Bob]

Well, Rubio always has that Senate gig to fall back on... :)

[Fido969]

Thank God.

[faithhopecharity]

Not eligible anyway

[GregoTX]

There was a SNL skit on the other night where Chris Christie was making VP suggestions to Donald Trump. One suggestion went like this:

Chris Christie: How about someone from the swing state of Florida that is half Hispanic that has a proven record of standing up for himself

Donald Trump: George Zimmerman?

[grania]

Trust us OH folks. You really, really don't want Kasich. He's a globalist, pro-bank big government kind of guy.

Wouldn't Huckabee be a better choice? Or better yet, let Trump surprise us.

[ek_hornbeck]

Trump is the first candidate in a general election that I'm actually looking forward to voting for in years. If he picked Rubio as VP, I'd vote for him, but I'd do so very reluctantly, much like my vote for Romney in 2012.

Normally I don't attach much weight to VP picks, but with a candidate who will be 70 at the time of the election, the VP choice really matters. Trump is obviously very spry, healthy, and energetic for a (near) 70 year old, but it's still something we need to think about.

[Newfy]

Well at the risk of stirring up a hornet’s nest I would like to see him pick Newt. I think he’s probably the best qualified for the job.

[sonofagun]

Sure it is. Rubio let it be known he would have nothing to do with a Trump administration.

[chajin]

I think the “search committee” is a smokescreen; Trump already knows who he wants, and that person is being vetted by his own investigators now. It isn’t any name being fluttered about in the news either.

There is one thing to be said for the GOP in the post-Reagan era: it has been 80% at picking good VP candidates. Quayle was (and still is) severely underrated, then there was Jack Kemp, Dick Cheney, Sarah Palin, and any of those four would have been as least as good as President as their running mates. The only choice that flopped was Ryan. Trump will not make that kind of mistake.

[ek_hornbeck]

You really, really don't want Kasich. He's a globalist, pro-bank big government kind of guy. Wouldn't Huckabee be a better choice?

I dislike both Huckabee and Kasich, but I despise Rubio. Like Nikki Haley, Rubio is an establishment hack who conned voters into thinking he was a Tea Party conservative. I especially detest how this nonentity was propped up as some kind of Golden Boy by the RNC and their talking heads on Fox. It obviously got to his head too, he decided that the Senate was too good for him from the get-go and that he was entitled to a fast track to the White House with no actual accomplishments to his name. It reminded me of the hype surrounding Obama at the 2004 Democratic Convention.

[bkopto]

Wouldn't Huckabee be a better choice?

Whaaaa?

IMHO, definitely NO.

[proust]

Whoever he picks will be on board with the movement. A Rino is a big step back.

[Buffalo Head]

"I think he’s probably the best qualified for the job."

Absolutely! But Newt would be as detrimental to the ticket as Sarah. The ideal spot for Newt would be Chief of Staff.

[ek_hornbeck]

He has his minuses, but Newt Gingrich is probably the best name I’ve seen floated around as a VP pick for Trump. Every other name Carson “leaked” is either an establishment hack, a lightweight, or both.

[fieldmarshaldj]

Good. Bubbles is an open-borders Establishment flunkie.

[nickcarraway]

Kasich described himself as between Sanders and Hillary politically. That is a good VP pick?

[Lurkinanloomin]

Good, he is ineligible and an amnesty pimp.

[nickcarraway]

Or if Gingrich isn’t available, his buddies, Pelosi and Dede Scozzafava can fill in. I guess no real conservatives are being considered for VP?

[ek_hornbeck]

I never said Kasich was good. I said that I detest him less than I detest Rubio, and that if Trump decides that he needs some establishment hack to “balance” his ticket (as Reagan did in 76 and 80, unfortunately), I’d rather be stuck with Kasich than with Rubio.