Trump says ‘you’re voting for the president … you’re voting for me’ when asked about vice-presidential pick
Donald Trump has said that vice presidential picks have “virtually no impact” on elections when asked about JD Vance’s fitness for office, in an apparent attempt to downplay his running mate’s role on the Republican ticket.
Trump made the comments during a combative interview at the annual convention of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) in Chicago. Asked by the Fox News journalist Harris Faulkner whether Vance would be ready to take over “on day one, if he has to be”, Trump avoided answering directly and instead downplayed the significance of the Vance’s role.
So what would be the consequences of Trump picking a new VP? I’ve heard people say he can’t and it’s not allowed, but clearly those things seem to have no effect on him, so what would actually stop him and what would the consequences actually be?
Trump has already been formally nominated, and because of how we vote for electors for President and VP as a combined ticket, Vance has been formally nominated as well. If Trump decides to discard him like a used frat couch, then the Republicans would have to deal with deadlines in individual states to re-file paperwork.
We learned from the uncertainty regarding Biden’s run that the first firm deadlines will start popping up next week. They are in Red states, though, so they are likely to give deference to Trump that they would not have given to a Democrat. Still, if Trump changes the upholstery too late, he may find that Vance is still on the ballot in a few states.
Which could potentially create a situation if Trump were to win, where his electoral votes are split across JD Vance, and thanks to the 12th amendment, the Senate picks the VP, and selects Harris’s running mate. If Jon Tester keeps his seat in Montana, which doesn’t seem super unlikely, this probably means a 50-50 Senate, with the VP keeping it in the Dems’ control.
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Officially? Probably not much, especially since republicans do their best to skirt the law wherever possible.
Unofficially? His pride, because he’d have to admit that he made a bad decision, and all the memes making fun of dementia Don’s dumb decisions. Especially since it’s yet another instance where their own rhetoric can be used against them, and they’ll keep floundering with their messaging.