Earlier this week, Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) raised some serious speculation that he could be former and potentially future President Donald Trump's running mate for 2024. The remarks in question came during a Wednesday interview that Scott had with Newsmax's Eric Bolling, during which he kept saying, "We'll see."
Bolling was prompted to ask Scott if he'll be Trump's running mate to close his segment after the two discussed the presidential debates and July's vice presidential debate.
"Senator, I would love to moderate a debate with you," Bolling pointed out, in reference to Scott's comments made previously in the segment that he'd like to see a debate moderated by Bolling and himself. "But I have a hunch that there might be a vice presidential debate, and I don't know, maybe [Vice President] Kamala Harris will be debating Senator Tim Scott on that one, and I would be honored to moderate that one," he said in a suggestive tone of voice.
"I hear there’s a debate in July," Scott told Bolling in response. "If you’re the guy moderating, maybe I’ll be talking to you. We’ll see what happens."
Scott then brought up the greatness of America, also pointing out "But we need a new president, and that's Donald Trump," prompting Bolling to add "and a new vice president. Is it you?"
Scott replied with laughter and said, "We'll see."
Scott and Bolling had been discussing the news that came out on Wednesday morning, which was that President Joe Biden had challenged Trump to a debate, who accepted.
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They came to an agreement for their first debate on July 27, hosted by CNN with Jake Tapper and Dana Bash serving as moderators. The demands laid out by the Biden reelection campaign have led to criticism and outrage about unfair standards and upended norms.
Biden is also reveling in his opponent facing multiple criminal cases against him, as during his heavily edited 13-second video message challenging Trump, he quipped "I hear you're free on Wednesdays," in reference to New York courts being off that day.
Donald Trump lost both debates to President Biden in 2020.
— Biden-Harris HQ (@BidenHQ) May 15, 2024
Now he’s acting like he wants to debate again? Make our day, palpic.twitter.com/Pa5d0mxMku
There will also be a vice presidential debate in July or August hosted by CBS News, which Harris has agreed to.
During the segment, Scott noted, "We don't expect a fair debate," especially with such a moderator, but he highlighted an expected "contrast" between Trump and Biden. He also called out the current president's disastrous record and emphasized the need to hold Biden "accountable."
Scott ran for president in the Republican primary, though he suspended his campaign in November and endorsed Trump in January before the New Hampshire Republican Primary. He's also been a fitting campaign surrogate for Trump and is looking to help the presumptive Republican nominee earn support among black voters.
The New York Post, in covering Scott's remarks during the Newsmax segment, also discussed the stakes of being selected as Trump's running mate:
Scott has long been reported as a top contender in the 45th president’s veepstakes, with one source telling The Post last month the senator was doing “everything he can to build his relationship with Donald Trump in an attempt to get picked as VP.”
Trump, 77, has said he will reveal his choice closer to the Republican National Convention, slated to be held July 15-18 in Milwaukee, and has spoken positively about several possible candidates.
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, who is also reported to be in the running, told The Post on Saturday that Trump had recently claimed to a gathering of his supporters at Mar-a-Lago that there are 50 candidates in play.
But Scott — a former 2024 presidential contender who dropped out of the race in November — has repeatedly been singled out for special praise by Trump.
“He’s a much better representative for me than he is a representative for himself,” Trump said of Scott at a campaign rally in South Carolina earlier this year. “And it’s true. And that’s a great compliment. And you know why? Because he’s a high-quality person. He doesn’t like talking about himself.”
Scott is widely considered to fit the bill of what sources close to the Trump campaign consider an ideal running mate for the former president — namely, someone who is loyal to the GOP standard-bearer but does not upstage him.
Last weekend, Axios speculated that former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley was in "serious consideration" to be his running mate. Trump himself quickly shot down those rumors in a Truth Social post, though he's yet to post about Scott's remarks. Instead, he's mostly stuck to posting commentary on the hush money criminal trial in New York City where he is a defendant and the high school graduation for his son, Barron.
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