Not the biggest fan of how it started, how it’s going, but this is hard to beat.
How it started, how it’s going pic.twitter.com/vSo5FSbQ4q
— Jared Moskowitz (@JaredEMoskowitz) May 8, 2024
Has Trump run through all, or nearly all, of the possible female VPs?
Nikki Haley – that ship sailed when she continued to run against him.
Kari Lake – that ship sailed when she got too crazy for the crazies.
Katie Britt – that ship sailed when her State of the Union response went up in flames.
Marge – that ship sailed at whatever point Trump no longer found the space laser lady useful.
Kristi Noem – that ship sailed this week, thank goodness!
Ships I wish would sail:
Sarah Huckabee Sanders – lectern-gate seems to have fallen off the map
Elise Stefanik – I think she’s too frumpy for Trump, but she’s ambitious, I’ll say that for her.
Republicans have a deep bench of awful.
Totally open thread.
Downpuppy
You know in your heart that there’s only 1 female under consideration : Ivanka.
WaterGirl
@Downpuppy: I think he would probably want Ivanka. But hasn’t she been giving him the cold shoulder? Are Ivanka and Jared cutting their losses?
Dangerman
Ivanka.
Chet Murthy
@WaterGirl: I read someplace that she’s thinking of coming back to support the campaign, and getting back into Daddy’s administration.
Downpuppy
@WaterGirl: Losses?! They’re living it up on the biggest pile of graft ever received.
Splitting Image
If he picks a woman it will be Huckabee. Gleefully signing a bill re-introducing child labor is on-brand for today’s Republicans.
WaterGirl
@Downpuppy: I just figured Trump had gotten too toxic for them. But I guess if he wins, they in the lottery.
WaterGirl
Don’t feel like we need to stick to this topic, i was going for light-hearted with the tweet, and then I went down a rabbit hole.
zhena gogolia
It will not be a woman. I’ve been saying this all along.
John Revolta
Don’t let’s forget Tulsi. Frankly if it’s a woman I’ll bet it’s her, or maybe Huckabee onaccounta there’s a history there.
BellyCat
Huckabee is not attractive enough for him to tolerate looking at more than once every couple months, briefly. (Apologies for the Unattractive Shaming, but she’d never make it through Central Casting, which is Trump’s primary criteria. )
citizen dave
Kellyanne (former) Conway? (not sure if she changed her name, or the divorce is final/whatever. Glad I don’t know this)
Roseanne Barr?
Blonde Bimbo on Fox News Morning show?
prostratedragon
Like that tweet at the top!
“Red Sails in the Sunset,” the Platters
Steve Holmes
I’m pretty sure he’ll pick the guy from North Dakota, he doesn’t want anyone who would get more of the spotlight. He”s gonna go with the beigest shade of beige that he can find, like Pence, and that’s Bergham, Bugham, Burgam, whatever it doesn’t matter, that guy is so beige that he is invisible.
Omnes Omnibus
It won’t be RFK, Jr., now that he has a campaign song.
Chet Murthy
@zhena gogolia: 100% agree with you. We’re talkin’ about the Misogynist-in-Chief here: the only women he accords the right of existence to, are 10s. And a woman who’s a 10, is almost by definition going to be too young to have amassed a record that makes her VP material. Apparently Yeller-Killer Noem is suitably attractive (I don’t think so myself, but it’s what I understand), but she was …. cray-cray, like so cray-cray even Fox News couldn’t resist beating her about it. She’s the exception that proves the rule, maybe.
Chet Murthy
@Steve Holmes: I could swear there was a period when Burgum was pretty damn anti-TFG. Like, sometime in 2023 even. But I can’t be bothered to google to find it, b/c he’s such a nonentity.
RaflW
@zhena gogolia: Saw a skeet yesterday (or maybe a news item?) that the GOP is putting up men for various seats that Republican women have previously held, how basically no/very few women are in the pipeline to be the next crop of governors, etc.
I’m not sure what ambitious conservative women have been thinking while egging all this on, but they’ve helped usher in this return to patriarchy, and it shouldn’t surprise anyone if indeed GOP women loose ground in getting endorsements or during primaries. Huh.
oldster
@Chet Murthy:
The basic math problem:
The Constitution requires over 35.
Trump requires under 35.
So, no female VP.
schrodingers_cat
@zhena gogolia: It will be another insipid pale specimen like Pence. No matter how much Vivek and Scott grovel and beg
Someone like Josh Hawley or Tom Cotton
Baud
Seems unfair to the Wicked Witch.
Chet Murthy
@oldster: LOL. Yeah, nicely put.
Steve Holmes
@Chet Murthy: yup, he”s a perfect nothing that has groveled his way to Mar a Lago,
Chet Murthy
@schrodingers_cat: Man, ol’ Schmivek, he’s such a maroon. I saw a headline about Ann Coulter saying she’d never vote for him b/c he’s “Indian”. Which, hey, she’s Pat Buchanan’s horcrux-come-to-life, so I completely buy that reason. That Schmivek can’t see that that’s what his party is turning into …… SAD!
Another Scott
There’s still Batwoman, and PoisonIvy, and a couple of others. They’ve already shown they will go to bat for him.
Cheers,
Scott.
Chet Murthy
@schrodingers_cat: So they say, those two are too …. ambitious. And that’s a sin in TFG’s orbit.
dmsilev
Huckabee Sanders seems to combine viciousness and shamelessness in the right levels to fit in well with hm. No surprise; she was after all his Mouth of Sauron for a while.
Omnes Omnibus
Um, turning?
piratedan
I find talk of DJT and his VP choices kind of surreal. This motherfucker is guilty of sooooo many crimes and the idea that the VP selection matters or moves the needle is kind of like watching political snuff films. Someone is going to be selected and as we’ve seen with damn near everyone else associated with him, they’re opting out of the society of normies.
Chet Murthy
@Omnes Omnibus: haha, touche’
WaterGirl
@Omnes Omnibus: I snorted at the thought, ow I guess I have to click.
edit: ha!
hells littlest angel
If Trump picks a woman as a running mate it will be someone in the mold of grotesque, plastic-enhanced, glittery hangers-on of Mar a Lago. That’s why I think Noem still has the inside track, with Britt a distant second.
Whoever Trump picks, it won’t be a rational choice.
Betsy
@Chet Murthy: I don’t know, he liked kellyanne pretty well, and she is so homely it’s almost comical (if one finds that funny), poor thing.
Before her Faux-style makeover, it was hard to believe what a hag she appeared. I could not believe it when I found out she was only 50 (this was back in 2015 or 2016).
I don’t believe in any of this appearance-shaming. I’m saying that’s the standard for Republican ladies – they have to look like female impersonators, even if they’re quite ugly it’s OK as long as they whore up according to the usual standards.
When I say female impersonators, I mean the old-fashioned stage kind, from when I was a boy.
All right, I am done channeling Republican misogyny and transphobia 🤮
Old Dan and Little Ann
There’s always Lindsey Graham.
Starfish
He is not picking a woman. The only binders full of women he has are binders full of women not taking his calls.
Betsy
@Old Dan and Little Ann: Oh. OH!!!!
RevRick
@Downpuppy: I’m of the opinion that Trump picks nobody. After all, what dictator wants someone waiting in the wings?
If he chooses anyone, it would be someone drained of all ambition and willpower, a human cipher.
mrmoshpotato
What about Liz Cheney? 😁
Chet Murthy
@RevRick: They say that a key priority of all authoritarian regimes is to ensure that there are no alternatives to the leader’s rule. None at all. It’s why Putin’s cronies are all so damn weak.
mrmoshpotato
@Downpuppy:
The Incest Ticket!
Scout211
Jared has already started to work on the campaign, at least the fundraising part.
Reuters
. . .
And I don’t believe either one of them when they say they won’t be involved in his campaign or administration if he should be re-elected.
they told everyone that they wouldn’t be involved in Trump’s first administration before he was elected. They lied and lied about it and we all know how that turned out.
They are liars.
But it was nice to hear that Trump told Stormy that she reminded him of his daughter Ivanka.
ETA: fixed autocorrect that thought “involved” was “in love.” 🙄
Kent
I’m betting if he strays from the White man from central MAGA casting, he’ll pick a Black man not a woman.
Why? I think he is laser focused on winning the 5 swing states and at least 4 of them have major Black populations. PA, MI, GA, and WI. AZ is the only one that doesn’t.
Need I remind you that his obsession with the electoral magic of Black men is what gave us the spectacle of Hershel Walker. There is really only on Black GOPer who makes sense and that is Tim Scott. On the other hand, there are plenty of prominent Black men from business, sports, and entertainment who might fit the bill. And Trump is nothing more than an entertainer
But if he wants a woman, isn’t there some female senator or governor from Iowa who butchers hogs for fun? Iowa is a safe red state these days so that seems possible.
Parfigliano
@Chet Murthy: Coulter told Vivik to his face she agreed with him but wouldnt vote for him because he’s an Indian. Vivik said he understood.
I didnt know Vivik translated is “whipped dog.”
Chet Murthy
@Scout211: I have to ask: maybe I’m just weird, but neither Daniels nor Karen McDougal look anything like Ivanka, do they? Is him saying “you look like my daughter” his way of saying “wow, you’re hot” ?
Just curious what the pathology is there.
topclimber
@WaterGirl: Ivanka’s kids already have one grandpa who went to jail (Charles Kushner, h/t Chris Christie). She might be a bit bummed that GP#2 might be headed there too.
ETA: No, GP#2 is not Grand Poop #2.
ron
You forgot Nancy Mace. And I don’t blame you.
Sally
@BellyCat: My first (ungenerous) thought too.
Omnes Omnibus
@Chet Murthy: Some questions are best left unasked lest they be answered.
Scout211
We can certainly speculate about the pathology. But eewww!
IIRC, Stormy said he told her that she reminded him of his daughter Ivanka and that both of them have been underestimated. Not that she looked like Ivanka. Although they are both female and blonde, his type.
zhena gogolia
@Steve Holmes: I agree.
zhena gogolia
@schrodingers_cat: Hawley and Cotton have too much personality.
Chet Murthy
@Scout211: @Omnes Omnibus: We already know he’s a pedophile: he raped a 13-year-old years ago, and his own words on multiple occasions make it clear he views young girls as sexual meat.
I can’t believe there’s any taboo he wouldn’t break, if it got him off, or got him paid. So really, I’m just trying to understand what his utterances mean.
lgerard
Some internet wit who calls himself New York Times Pitchbot settled the issue as to who was the best female VP candidate a month ago:
“There are many qualified and talented potential running mates that could help Donald Trump expand his coalition. But Lauren Boebert is the only one that has hands-on experience building a big tent.”
My money has been on Scott (SC) from the start, but boy did he look like an idiot when he was asked about accepting the 2024 election results. Maybe that will help him with his flatulence, Donald Trump though.
Geminid
@schrodingers_cat: Hawley’s up for reelection this year so if he were the VP choice that could cost Republicans Missouri’s Senate seat. Same for Rick Scott and Florida.
Cotton would be a safe choice, the kind Trump’s campaign team could recomnend He might appeal to the more traditional Republicans. Trump has the knuckledragger vote locked in already so he might as well go after the suits.
Scout211
The question I think we should be asking is who does Susie Wiles think is the best running mate for Trump. She’s trying to get him elected and she may have a say in what the candidate for veep could add to the ticket
My guess is that Doug Burgum would not bring much to the ticket because most voters would ask, “Doug who?”
Rusty
Everyone named is a politician, elected at some point. Are there any non-politicians he could pick? Trump was even a school board member before he ran. Is there some else? (I’m thinking a minor celebrity or former athlete. Just famous enough that most people have heard of them, not so famous as to be threatening to Trumps ego.
Another Scott
@Scout211: Based on their incompetence in trying to hold a fundraiser at a restricted location in Miami, I wouldn’t be surprised if they try to hold the fundraiser at some place like Trinity Cemetery.
:-/
Cheers,
Scott.
John Revolta
@Scout211: As opposed to the last guy?
Keithly
@RevRick: So you’re saying Pence has a chance?
kalakal
Eva Braun
randy khan
I was in Sioux Falls today and the topic of Gov. Noem came up. Some interesting (dare I say fun?) tidbits:
*Everyone is pretty sure the dog story is true because she’s been telling it to people she knows for years.
*She wanted to include it in her first book, but the editor wouldn’t let her do it. (A wise choice.)
*She had no idea at all it would play this way because she thinks it was just a normal thing to do.
Lyrebird
@mrmoshpotato:
Best laugh of the day, thanks!!
@Baud:
Agreed, unfair, but… the House fell on her [plans to bring more chaos], right?
Jackie
Sleeper candidate for VP: Former U.S. Senator Kelly Loeffler.
https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2024/04/11/former-senator-kelly-loeffler-talks-exclusively-with-atlanta-news-first-trump-fundraiser/
I’m not sold that the names bantered about are the TIFG’s choices. He thrives on surprise, and I think Loeffler might surprise us all. Georgia plus MAGA plus $$$
RevRick
@Keithly: Trump wouldn’t leave him hanging.
Chet Murthy
@Jackie: it was a short article, and I didn’t see addressed the key question: does former Senator Loeffler believe that the 2020 election was stolen from TFG? From what I understand if you’re not any election denier, you can’t be part of Trump’s campaign.
Geminid
@Rusty: Trump could pick a non-politician, but there would be at least two drawbacks. One is the problem of vetting. A Governor or Senator has had to withstand scrutiny by the press and opposition research by rival campaigns. They might still have a skeleton or two in their closet, but if Trump picks a private citizen there’s no telling hom many skeletons will come tumbling out of their closets.
I think the other drawback is that Trump needs a more standard VP selection, like a Senator or Governor, to reassure establishment Republicans. He’s got the conservative evangelicals and he’s got the more secular crazies, but I don’t think he has the Chamber of Commerce/Wall Street Journal types locked down, and I think he needs them to win. This is not so large a group numerically, but they punch above their weight when it comes to influence in their communities.
Trump has some competent people running his campaign for a change, and I think they believe he has a path to victory but know it’s a narrow one. So if Suzie Wiles and Chris LaCivita have their say, Trump will pick a more normal and reassuring Veep.
John Revolta
@Jackie: Interesting. Loeffler’s husband, as you may recall, owns the New York Stock Exchange………… so you can see she is highly qualified for the job!
Another Scott
@Chet Murthy:
19thNews.org (from 1/7/2021):
I don’t think she’s on his list after that.
FWIW.
Cheers,
Scott.
Chet Murthy
@Another Scott: yeah, that’s going to leave a mark. No way TFG’s going to forget that.
prostratedragon
@Another Scott: It’s just a convenient 10 minute walk from the corthouse!! (Not that tfg would walk it.)
@Starfish:
Maybe Ms. Daniels’s testimony has reminded them all of this.
Jackie
@Chet Murthy: I believe she’s an election denier.
wjca
But for these grifters, there’s no such thing as enough. So if they’ve got a shot at further grifting from the White House, naturally they’ll go for it.
Related: making Ivanka VP amounts to securing his dynasty. Guessing “dynasty” is a word that would resonate with TIFG. And his other kids are so pathetic that even he notices.
Jackie
@Another Scott: You’re probably right. I still contend, due to TIFG’s propensity for theater, he’s going to choose a sleeper MAGA supporter who’s not currently on the MSM’s radar.
wjca
It’s lese majeste if you fail to capitalize! That should be His Flatulence
Another Scott
@Jackie: Could be. But he’s a coward and hates being laughed at, so there’s probably some minimal level of “safeness” attached to anyone he’s considering.
The Wikipedia article on the 2016 process is kinda interesting. As usual, TIFG was talking about a couple of dozen possible choices, trying to keep people interested.
In the end…
Christie!! :-/
Of the people in that article, only Kasich (who was a monster himself) comes off looking like a human being with a brain (he supposedly turned down the offer and didn’t endorse him).
We’ll see.
Thanks.
Cheers,
Scott.
Chet Murthy
@Another Scott:
A former friend was all het up about Kasich; she was also livid about TFG, so good on her for that. But she was 100% down with Kasich and the whole Lee Atwater schtick Kasich has goin’. “We balanced the budget when I was in Congress” my ass, Johnny boy: *Clinton* balanced that budget, ya putz!
Jackie
@Another Scott: On the other hand, Vance was 100% anti-trump. Until he wasn’t. And, supposedly he’s on the Short List. 🤷🏼♀️
John
My money is on Tulsi Gabbard. She’s a woman. She’s a pretend Democrat. She’s shameless. By the way, I couldn’t remember her name so i googled (actally, duckduckgoed) ‘crazy hawaiian democrat’ and her wikipedia page was the top result.
https://duckduckgo.com/?q=crazy+hawaiian+democrat&t=newext&atb=v350-1&ia=web
KSinMA
@zhena gogolia: I agree with you (as usual). I think TFG will pick a VP on the principle that he doesn’t want to share the spotlight with anybody.
Hoppie
@Another Scott: Crisco was the prosecutor who put Jared’s Dad in the slammer. If he were a viable choice it would be a remarkable window on many, er, wierdnesses. I sort of doubt it.
CapnMubbers
Tulsi Gabbard recently switched parties.
CapnMubbers
Tulsi Gabbard left the Democratic Party in October, 2022.
Second try; I managed to mis-type my email.
wjca
Certainly a necessary condition. But not the only criteria. I think the discussion is about what the other required/desired characteristics are.
Citizen Alan
@RaflW: It certainly doesn’t surprise me. it was a plot point in The Handmaid’s Tale that some of the ringleaders of the coup that lead to Gilead were women who honestly thought they would be in positions of authority and power in the aftermath of installing a patriarchal fundamentalist dictatorship..
Chet Murthy
@Citizen Alan: Heh, your comment made me think of all those female MAGAts who started writing blog posts and columns about how they’re not taken seriously by their male peers, how they get subjected to massive sexism and on and on and on. I mean, “lady, what the fuck did you expect? Really? How did you survive so long without the common sense God gave a ladybug ?”
Rusty
@Geminid: These are good points. You’ve convinced me that even after a term as president, he still needs a more conventional VP pick.
AM in NC
@RaflW: Serena Joy was shocked too.
evodevo
@Old Dan and Little Ann: Yes. This. I’ve thought this for awhile. He’s a master at groveling, not going to show up Trumpy in the brains dept., and not married to a hottie…
Geminid
@Rusty: I think Trump needs a conventional VP pick; whether he makes one could be a different story. This could be a test of Suzie Wiles’ and Chris LaCivita’s influence.
Kosh III
God forbid he picks the biggest most offensive airhead of all: Marsha Blackburn.
louc
@lgerard:
A friend’s brother coordinated auto shows in Michigan years ago. He had to kick Trump out of one because he kept harassing an auto dealer’s 15-year-old daughter who was manning the dealer’s booth. IIRC, it was a Mercedes Benz show. Probably that’s why Trump hates Mercedes.
I’m betting that the auto dealer is a stalwart Republican and that’s why the story never became public.
Paul in KY
@dmsilev: Now that Noem imploded, (RIP Cricket), she would certainly have the evil smarmyness that he likes. She’s not that easy on the eyes though, and TFG would want someone conventionally attractive (if woman). Think it will be some Penceish dweebo, now.
Paul in KY
@randy khan: She liked doing it. That’s the kind of person she is.