VEEPSTAKES: Who will Trump tap – Rubio, Vance, Scott, Burgum, Youngkin, or total surprise like Sarah Huckabee Sanders?
How pro-Israel are those on Trump’s short list?
DES MOINES, IOWA — With Democrats in a full blown panic that Joe Biden might not be capable of winning in November, much less governing for the next four years, all eyes are now on Donald J. Trump.
Who will the former president tap to be his vice presidential nominee?
How pro-Israel are those on Trump’s short list of options?
How pro-life will he – or she – be?
Will the choice electrify, simply reassure, or discourage the 40 million-plus Evangelicals who will play a significant role in this high-stakes election year?
We’ve seen no leaks yet – Trump and his team are keeping their cards close to their vests.
But the announcement is imminent.
GOP insiders and Trump operatives tell me they expect Trump to phone in his top choice, make the offer, and release the news in the next 24 to 48 hours.
After all, the Republican National Convention kicks off in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on Monday.
WHAT ARE EVANGELICAL ACTIVISTS SAYING ABOUT TRUMP’S VP OPTIONS?
Over the last month, I’ve been meeting with Evangelical leaders all over the United States.
For the last few days, I’ve been here in Des Moines, Iowa, meeting with – and speaking to – about 1,000 Evangelical Christian pastors, ministry leaders, and grassroots activists at The Family Leadership Summit.
Almost everyone I’ve met is abuzz about who they want Trump to pick – and who they don’t want him to pick.
Not everyone here is a Trump fan, though most are. Indeed, most tell me that they are deeply grateful for how conservatively Trump governed in the White House, including appointing three new Supreme Court justices who then overturned Roe v. Wade and sent decision-making over abortion back to the United States.
Many also expressed to me how impressed they were by Trump’s strength on the world stage against Russia, Iran, China, and North Korea; his willingness to rebuild the U.S. military; and his steadfast commitment to stand with Israel, move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, and his success brokering four Arab-Israeli peace deals that became known as the Abraham Accords.
Not a single Evangelical I spoke with wants Biden to be re-elected or Vice President Kamala Harris to emerge as Commander in Chief.
To the contrary, they are worried that Biden’s physical and mental weakness – along with his weak foreign policies – are inviting the enemies of the U.S. and Israel to be dangerous and aggressive.
EVANGELICALS WANT A VP WHO IS PRO-LIFE, PRO-FREEDOM, AND PRO-ISRAEL
Organized by Bob Vander Plaats, who serves on the ALL ISRAEL NEWS advisory board, the Summit attracted a number of prominent conservative voices, including Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds, former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum, and Dr. Michael Youssef, the Egyptian-American pastor from Atlanta whose “Leading The Way” radio and TV program is seen all over the country and around the world.
I was also honored to speak about the state of U.S.-Israel relations, the state of the war Israel is waging against Iran and its terror proxies, and the work of The Joshua Fund, ALL ISRAEL NEWS, and THE ROSENBERG REPORT on TBN amidst Israel’s darkest hour.
Standing solidly with Israel is a major priority for Vander Plaats and The Family Leader ministry and, to their credit, they have done much to advance and deepen that conviction among Iowan and Midwestern Christians.
More on that in another column.
ASSESSING TRUMP’S SHORT LIST
Right now, let me give you a quick snapshot of those on Trump’s short list and what I’ve been hearing from Evangelical leaders and activists about each one.
WILD CARD? ARKANSAS GOVERNOR SARAH HUCKABEE SANDERS — She would be a surprise pick. She has not been mentioned by Trump advisors as being on the short list. And she has said publicly that she is not interested in the job. But some insiders tell me Trump has been actively considering her. Indeed, the name I hear most often as the VP pick that would most electrify Evangelical and conservative voters is Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders. Smart and feisty, she is a devout Evangelical Christian and a reliable, principled conservative who is strongly pro-life and presides over one of the most pro-life states in the Union.
Though she doesn’t have foreign policy experience, she is just as pro-Israel as her father, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, one of the most pro-Israel Evangelicals in the world, which is why I have more confidence in her on this issue than others on the short list who have no proven track record in Israel.
Sarah is certainly no newcomer to politics. She was a senior advisor to her father’s presidential campaigns. She was a senior advisor to Arkansas Senators John Boozman and Tom Cotton. She also served as a senior advisor to Trump during his 2016 campaign (after her father’s campaign ended). She then served as Trump’s most effective (read: combative) White House press secretary, serving for two years, from July 2017 to July 2019. She is deeply trusted by Trump, who regards loyalty as a trait supremely important to him. She is beloved by Trump supporters, and well-regarded even by Republicans who are not Trump fans. That said, she’s young – only 41 – turning 42 on Aug. 13. She’s also inexperienced. She’s only been governor for 18 months, taking office on Jan. 10, 2023. But Trump loves surprises, so keep a close eye on Sarah.
FLORIDA SENATOR MARCO RUBIO — A slightly older but still youthful option is Rubio, 53. He, too, is a smart, principled conservative, articulate, telegenic, devoutly Evangelical, Latino, fluent in Spanish, with a wonderful and winsome personal story of his family coming from Cuba and living the "American Dream." I know Rubio and have met with him numerous times. I’m very impressed with him and agree with many Evangelicals here and around the country that I’ve been speaking with in recent days and weeks who believe he is one of the strongest possible picks that Trump could make. Part of this is because Rubio could appeal to Hispanic voters, conservative Catholic Democrats, Independents, and some suburban women and thus potentially expand the electoral map for Trump.
Rubio ran for president in 2016 and therefore knows the rigors of a national campaign. He has been well-vetted by the press. He has lots of foreign policy experience. He has impeccable pro-Israel credentials and would be the strongest on foreign policy – bar none – of anyone Trump is known to be considering.
He has also always been solidly pro-life. That said, some pro-life leaders this week criticized Rubio for seeming to moderate his position by supporting the removal of the pro-life plank from the Republican platform. “Gut-wrenching to see @marcorubio and @JDVance1 run from life as they run to @realDonaldTrump as they seek their seat at the VP table,” Vander Plaats tweeted on Monday.
“Abandoning the most fundamental right, the right to life, is no way to win.” Another complication: the Constitution forbids the president and vice president from being from the same state. Though Trump is a New Yorker, he moved to Florida several ago and lives at Mar-A-Lago. Might Trump officially move to his house in Bedminster, New Jersey, or ask Rubio to move his official residence to Nevada, where Rubio was born and raised?
SOUTH CAROLINA SENATOR TIM SCOTT — As I wrote earlier this week, “few American senators have a personal testimony as powerful or as inspiring as Tim Scott,” 58, the first and thus far only African American Republican ever to be elected to the Senate.
Some conservative and Evangelical leaders have told me that Scott would make an electrifying pick for conservatives generally and for Evangelicals, in particular, should Trump ask him to join the ticket. He loves Jesus, loves America, and loves Israel. He is hopeful and optimistic about the future of the country, especially with bold, visionary, and courageous leadership in the White House.
And he could very well help expand the electoral map for Trump. How? By making Trump – who has been damaged by 34 felony convictions and embarrassing stories of paying off a porn star, not exactly appealing for traditional values voters – more attractive to Christians and independent voters, as well as to African Americans who are being hurt badly by the high inflation created by the Biden administration.
Scott makes a compelling argument that with his help on big tax cuts and Opportunity Zone legislation, Trump created the lowest unemployment rate for Black Americans and the highest rate of home ownership and small business ownership for Black and Latino Americans and women than at any other time in the country’s history.
Polls show that upwards of 15% to 20% of African Americans are actively considering voting for Trump. More than the typical support for past Republican presidential candidates. If Senator Scott were on the ticket, could Trump lock in those gains and even drive up those numbers to 25%?”
OHIO SENATOR J.D. VANCE — Emerging as a MAGA-base favorite, with policy views that are perhaps closest to Trump, Vance is good friends with Donald Trump Jr., who reportedly has been championing Vance to his father for VP. That said, Vance is very young – only 39 – he’ll turn 40 on Aug. 2. Also, he has only served in the Senate for 18 months, having never served in elected office before.
Still, he is a war veteran, having served as a corporal in the Marines during the Iraq war. A bestselling author, Vance rose to prominence with his 2016 book, "Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis." A devout Christian, Vance describes himself as pro-Israel, though because he’s so new to politics he does not have much of a track record on this important issue.
Another concern I’ve been hearing – and that I share – is that Vance does not seem to really understand the magnitude of threat to the United States and the world posed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and has thus been dead set against providing funding and arms to Ukraine in its fight against Putin. His pro-life credentials have been suddenly called into question this week by Vander Plaats and others because Vance supported the removal of the pro-life plank from the Republican platform, along with Rubio.
NORTH DAKOTA GOVERNOR DOUG BURGUM — Wealthy, a successful businessman, and telegenic, Burgum ran unsuccessfully for the GOP nomination this year but caught Trump’s eye and interest. He has executive experience, which is a plus, and knows energy policy. But I haven’t met anyone who thinks Burgum is exciting or would expand the electoral map for Trump.
Some think he’d only be chosen if Trump wants a “boring” running mate who is certain not to outshine the top of the ticket. That said, how much do we really know about Burgum? He is divorced and remarried. Should we be concerned about any surprises? Given that he has no foreign policy experience, I can’t say I know enough about his core convictions on Israel, Iran, and the threat of radical Islamism to assure me that he would be solid on these issues.
Burgum did sign a six-week ban on abortion, which is good. However, he opposes a nationwide ban on abortion. Trump may like that, but Evangelicals will not. What’s more, some Evangelical activists I spoke to here in Iowa are also concerned that Burgum has a bad track record when it comes to resisting the aggressive gay-rights and trans-rights movements.
“In 2020, Burgum criticized an anti-LGBTQ resolution of the state GOP as ‘hurtful and divisive rhetoric,’” reported ABC News. “He vetoed a 2021 measure to ban transgender girls from playing on girls’ teams in public schools, saying it ‘would unnecessarily inject the state into a local issue by creating a ban with myriad unforeseen consequences.’ In 2023, Burgum vetoed a bill he said would make teachers into ‘pronoun police.’” Critics say he only began to change his tune on these issues after beginning to run for president.
VIRGINIA GOVERNOR GLENN YOUNGKIN — Only 57, a highly successful businessman, and an Evangelical Christian who helped plant an Anglican Church with his wife, Youngkin shocked the country in 2021 by winning the gubernatorial race in Virginia and flipping what seemed to be a solidly blue state into a red state.
A principled and cheerful conservative, he proved capable of appealing not only to voters in middle and southern Virginia who are rural and conservative, but also to suburban moderates and independents in northern Virginia. At his side were a very impressive African American woman (and military veteran) whom Youngkin had chosen to be his Lieutenant Governor (Winsome Sears), and an equally impressive Hispanic lawyer (Jason Miyares) whom he had chosen to be his Attorney General.
If Trump were to choose Youngkin, many GOP strategists believe the governor could help Trump win the state. It’s no sure thing, but if that were to happen, they say, it would make it almost impossible for Biden and Harris to be reelected.
Youngkin has no foreign policy experience so I can’t really assess his core convictions on Israel, Iran, Russian or China matters. Overall, conservatives have been happy with how Youngkin has led Virginia over the past several years. But Youngkin’s appeal to Evangelicals took a hit in March. “To the shock of voters across the Commonwealth, Youngkin, who campaigned as a born-again Christian and spent many a Sunday in sanctuaries like Cornerstone Chapel’s, committed the ultimate betrayal – signing a same-sex marriage bill that was not only completely unnecessary but a stinging rebuke of conservative values,”
noted a column in the Christian Post.
“While the governor’s staff cheered the bill’s conscience rights for pastors, it offers no such shield for bakers, photographers, teachers, web designers, adoption agencies, Christian schools, and so many others. A few throwaway sentences clarifying that ministers won’t be forced to perform actual wedding ceremonies do nothing to resolve the hammer this legislation takes to everyday people. It doesn’t protect the worker who doesn’t want to be forced to celebrate LGBT Pride. It’s not going to help the parent who says, ‘I don’t want my children indoctrinated with this radical curriculum.’ Thanks to Governor Younkin, anyone who believes in marriage as human history defines it is a sitting duck – a prime target for persecution, marginalization, and even civil action.”
Joel C. Rosenberg is the editor-in-chief of ALL ISRAEL NEWS and ALL ARAB NEWS and the President and CEO of Near East Media. A New York Times best-selling author, Middle East analyst, and Evangelical leader, he lives in Jerusalem with his wife and sons.
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