
The “pick a woman” theory also flies in the face of the fact that politics is not about biology or even chemistry, but about math and science. Indeed, Mr. Trump beat Mrs. Clinton in 2016, wresting from her the almost certain title of first female president of the United States even though the majority of voters were women. While some Republicans are concerned about a gender gap in November and rightly believe a female vice president could help attract more female voters, I don’t disagree, but I also see things differently for two reasons: Mr. Biden has his own problem with male voters, and a woman is more likely to vote for someone who shares her values and vision rather than her gender. As sure as the sun rises in the East, any woman Mr. Trump chooses will be denigrated as not enough/not a real woman/not a relatable woman.
Certainly, there are many qualified and compelling women for Mr. Trump to consider. There are accomplished young elected officials who happen to be mothers of young children, like Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama (42), Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York (39), and Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders of Arkansas (41 years old). And experienced elected officials and grandmothers, like Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa, Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and Gov. Kristi Noem of South Dakota. Any of these women would have no problem facing Ms. Harris in a debate.
The pressure from some quarters for Mr. Trump to choose Nikki Haley is based on the false belief that she can somehow appeal to moderates and independents, while he cannot. But the same moderate Republicans who left Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida following his decision to sign into law the Heartbeat Protection Act, the same coalition Ms. Haley is now counting on to stay in the race for another month, might be surprised to learn that she recently claimed that she too would have signed a six-week heartbeat bill as governor of South Carolina. Mr. DeSantis also failed to show that he could attract the voters that Mr. Trump could not: the governor’s spectacular fall from 2022 to 2023, the failure to win a single county in Iowa in 99 and difficulties connecting with voters leaves one wondering what he would add to a Trump. ticket.
Given all of this, if I were advising Mr. Trump, I would suggest he choose a person of color as his running mate, based on considering all possibilities and satisfying procedural issues like dual residency in Florida . Not for identity politics the way Democrats do, but to contribute as equals to lead an America First movement that includes more union workers, independents, new voters, veterans, Hispanics , Asian Americans and African Americans.
Mr. Biden is seeing losses in key constituencies of the fragile coalition he built in 2020 while Mr. Trump is recording impressive numbers among African-American and especially Hispanic voters – particularly men – in many polls in face-to-face against Mr. Biden. As with the 2016 voters, Mr. Trump does not need to secure a majority of minority voters to be elected president, but rather to eat into Mr. Biden’s margins. Any list would include Mr. Rubio, Mr. Scott, Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida (a TV firebrand) and perhaps Rep. Wesley Hunt of Texas. Dr. Ben Carson, a former neurosurgeon and Trump cabinet member, is currently a favorite among Trumpworld insiders. Vivek Ramaswamy, the energetic businessman full of policy prescriptions who suspended his campaign to support Mr. Trump, is a favorite among some in Mr. Trump’s ears and on social media.