Instead of holding a campaign rally this weekend, Trump used his free time from his chaotic criminal trial to summon donors and vice presidential contenders to Mar-a-Lago for an odd, Apprentice-style running mate audition.
Trump’s current shortlist for vice president is a who’s who of anti-democratic election deniers, anti-abortion extremists, and Trump sycophants. According to audio obtained by Axios, Trump heaped praise on the field and provided real-time reviews during a private luncheon over the weekend.
The embarrassing auditions continued the next morning with several contenders tripping over themselves to defend Trump’s harmful rhetoric, his failed record, and more.
Tim Scott: Tap Dances Around Accepting Election Results and the Facts on Black Unemployment
Trump often praises Sen. Tim Scott’s surrogate abilities and Scott was eager to please during an interview on Meet the Press this weekend. Scott was fact-checked in embarrassing fashion after claiming Black unemployment was lower under Trump’s time in the White House. When given multiple chances to commit to accepting the results of the 2024 election if Trump did not win this fall, Scott refused, instead opting to reject a basic tenet of American democracy and embrace a once-politically disqualifying position in pre-MAGA politics.
Doug Burgum: Completely Comfortable With the Language of Fascists
During Trump’s weekend MAGA VP audition at Mar-a-Lago he reportedly used fascist rhetoric to complain about his criminal trial and called President Biden’s White House a “Gestapo administration.” During an interview on State of the Union the next day, Gov. Doug Burgum defended the offensive remarks by echoing Trump’s previously debunked, false claims that his criminal trial is “politically motivated” and orchestrated by the president’s political goals.
Marco Rubio: Repeating Trump’s Anti-Abortion Lies
Despite being the target of vicious attacks from Trump in the past, Rubio surprisingly finds himself in the running to be vice president and is clearly eager to please the MAGA leader despite their history. A long-time abortion ban supporter, Marco Rubio is now repeating Trump’s lie about Democrats supporting the murder of newborn babies.
Kristi Noem: Puppy Killer Who Never Met Kim Jong Un
After spending much of last week defending her admission of murdering a 14-month-old puppy, Gov. Kristi Noem came under fire after going out of her way to lie in her new book about meeting North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un. When gently pressed about the lie on Face the Nation, Noem awkwardly backtracked saying, “I’ve met with many world leaders…I’m not going to talk about specific meetings with world leaders. I’m just not going to do that.”
Published: May 6, 2024 | Last Modified: May 8, 2024