American presidential analysis: who will be Donald Trump’s running mate?

“My next vice president will be chosen by you” is one of the many catchy phrases appearing at the top of the many emails Donald Trump sends almost daily to his supporters.

The Republican candidate thus invites them to elect his ideal running mate for the presidential election next November.

As soon as we click on the links, we can indicate a name and the most important issues that the candidate should tackle: the situation at the border, the fight against abortion, the elimination of the “State deep ” (Deep State), stopping the wave of crimes or even electoral interference.

Once the answers have been chosen, you have to take out your credit card so that, supposedly, the answers are taken into consideration.

Donald Trump being who he is, we seriously doubt that he will leave it to his flock to determine who will be at his side, facing outgoing Vice-President Kamala Harris, in less than six months. But these kinds of fundraising techniques are used by politicians of all stripes.

In fact, who are the people likely to appear on the Republican ticket? Just look at those who are doing everything to attract the attention of the former tenant of the White House.

These potential candidates are taking to the barricades on all media platforms, in order to hammer home the Trumpist message of witch huntof political persecution and of corrupt justice system.

They have one thing in common: they are all ready to do the dirty work of the ex-president at his first criminal trial in New York, that is to say, repeat the message of supposed political persecution and attack the witnesses head-on. charge, since they are not subject to a gag order like that against Donald Trump, who faces 34 counts of falsification of commercial documents.

The waltz of Trump’s vassals

While his supporters are more than sparse, every day, in the Manhattan court, and even his close family has been more than discreet in their support in court, Donald Trump finally received visits from potential candidates as a sign of support .

On Monday, it was JD Vance, Republican senator from Ohio who was once critical of Donald Trump, but who quickly returned to the ranks. His name has been circulating a lot since he attended a recent event at Mar-a-Lago and other campaign fundraising events planned these days.

Loyal to the ex-president, he tried to discredit Michael Cohen, Mr. Trump’s former lawyer. This guy is a convicted felonhe said outside the Manhattan court. Does a reasonable person believe what Michael Cohen says?

On Tuesday, it was the turn of Vivek Ramaswamy, Mr. Trump’s former rival in the race for the presidential nomination, to appear in Manhattan. The businessman, who was the first to leave the unwinnable race last January, has always been among the ex-president’s favorites.

Mr. Ramaswamy’s liveliness and very right-wing ideas seem to have seduced Donald Trump. To the point of making room for him, probably not as a running mate, but in his possible administration.

Doubt the elections, a prerequisite?

South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, also a former declared candidate for the Republican nomination, is not left out. For several days now, he has been carrying out the mission of discrediting the electoral process if Donald Trump does not win the November election.

At the end of the week, on the show Meet the Pressthe question was asked: Will you commit to accepting the results of the 2024 elections? His non-response: President will be Donald Trump. In the end, the 47th president will be Donald Trump.”}}”>Ultimately, the 47th president will be Donald Trump. When pressed further, Scott responded: This is my statement.

Also present in this unofficial race, New York representative Elise Stefanik added her two cents, declaring that she would only accept the results if they are constitutional.

Along the same lines, Florida Representative Byron Donalds, who some also see as a potential running mate, added more on the subject: As long as localities follow the election laws passed by the legislature, yes. In both cases, it is difficult to understand what all this means apart from the Trumposphere.

Even Mike Johnson, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, appeared before the media in Manhattan to affirm his support for the accused. This elected politician from Louisiana, of whom we had never heard, emerged as if by miracle during the uproar of the far-right wing of the Republican Party which had Kevin McCarthy expelled from his seat as president of the institution.

He was there, probably not out of interest in the post of vice-president, but certainly to remember Donald Trump well, to show that he wishes to keep his post after November at the head of the House. He denounced the prosecutors’ star witness, Michael Cohen, a man who is clearly on a personal revenge mission and is widely known as a witness with problems with the truth.

The Apprentice, “VP” version

Donald Trump was a reality TV ace with The Apprentice, on NBC, for 14 seasons. He gave several candidates a job interview, eliminating them one by one and finally offering the last one a senior management position within his company.

Today, there is no formal television interview, but Donald Trump appears to be using the same formula as he watches all of his potential surrogates defend and speak highly of him during the criminal trial he is currently undergoing in New York. York.

His famous formula You’re fired“,”text”:”You’re fired”}}”>You’re fired (You are fired) however, is already likely to address Kristi Noem, the governor of very conservative South Dakota. The one that some saw as a serious candidate for the post of running mate seems to have fallen in this race.

However, as noted by New York Timeswho spoke of trumpification, even his physical transformation in recent years coincided with this desire to get closer to Donald Trump. According to columnist Vanessa Friedman, who scrutinizes the image of politicians, Kristi Noem Jr., or even a brown-haired version of Lara Trump, Eric Trump’s wife and new co-chair of the Republican National Committee, starting to look like a dead ringer for Kimberly Guilfoyle, Donald TrumpJr.’s fiancée. , or even a brown version of Lara Trump, Eric Trump’s wife and new co-chair of the Republican National Committee is starting to look like a dead ringer for Kimberly Guilfoyle, Donald Trump Jr.’s fiancée, or even a brunette version of Lara Trump, Eric Trump’s wife and new co-chair of the Republican National Committee.

His book No going back!which was intended as a platform to present herself to voters as a strong woman with strong right-wing political ideals, was heavily attacked for her inaccuracies.

There is the meeting with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, which does not seem to have taken place, but also the meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, which she says she canceled, and the threatening conversation with the former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, whom she said she remembered. (Representatives for Mr. Macron and Ms. Haley rejected his statements.)

Ms. Noem also admitted in her book to shooting her family’s 14-month-old dog in cold blood because it could not be trained to be a hunting dog. During her media tour, described by some as disastrous, she consistently refused to apologize or acknowledge her lies. Is his dog dead, in every sense of the word, in this race for running mate? Time will tell, but Governor Noem’s star has shined a lot less in the last week.

In the end, it will be Donald Trump who chooses his number two anyway. His last running mate, who became vice-president, Mike Pence, who allowed him to attract the support of evangelical Republicans, demonstrated loyalty without regard to Mr. Trump throughout the duration of his mandate .

He was “rewarded” by the opprobrium of the defeated president, who criticized him for not having done more during the infamous assault of January 6, 2021.

Running for this position may come with a heavy price, but some Republican leaders are willing to take the risk and become number 2 for a potential president who will be 78 years old next November.