President Trump’s vice-presidential search is in the home stretch. Trump must pick a running mate prior to the Republican convention in mid-July, but he has ample incentive to pick one sooner. The sooner he makes his pick, the sooner that individual can prepare for a vice-presidential debate, which could be held as soon as July.
Still, Trump has kept people guessing, as he likes to do. More than a dozen names are popping up on shortlists. Maybe all of them are under consideration. Maybe all of them are feints. With Trump, you never know.
But the days of wild speculation are past, and the time for serious decision-making is here. After weighing the pros and cons of each possible selection, I realize the best choice has been obvious all along: Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio.
As a military veteran who grew up in a dysfunctional family in the exurbs of Cincinnati, Vance speaks to (and for) the “Forgotten Man,” the working class, and the middle Americans of the Rust Belt who carried Trump to his shocking victory in 2016. He’s a proven winner who defeated a tough Republican field and then a formidable Democrat opponent in what turned out to be a tougher-than-expected 2022 midterm.
But Vance isn’t just a populist totem. He’s incredibly smart. He may have the single best brain in the entire U.S. Congress for grasping what must be done to complete the Trump realignment on the border, on foreign policy, and on draining the swamp.
