Donald Trump’s vice-presidential selection race is less about qualifications and more about who can best humble themselves before him.
Donald Trump will undoubtedly be the Republican candidate for the presidency, but the race for his vice-presidential pick is just as absurd and farcical as one might expect from such an unpredictable and divisive figure. Among the candidates are a conspiracy theorist who believes wildfires are the result of Jewish space lasers, another who’s peddled claims about Satan-worshipping “paedo grifters” in the Democratic Party, a lifelong bachelor rumored to have gotten engaged just to meet the qualifications for the role, and even someone who has openly admitted to killing a puppy. The focus of this competition doesn’t appear to be who’s best suited to the role or who could complement Trump’s many shortcomings in leadership. Rather, it seems to be a race to see who can most profoundly abase themselves before a man who seems to want the powers of a monarch and the devotion of a cult leader.
This degrading search for a running mate isn’t an anomaly; it represents the further unraveling of the Republican Party under Trump’s leadership. Even before Trump’s rise, the GOP had more than its fair share of extremists, racists, and authoritarian-leaning figures. The previous Republican president, George W. Bush, had similarly questionable credentials: he lost the popular vote but was appointed president by a partisan Supreme Court, and his administration launched a disastrous war under the false pretext of weapons of mass destruction—its bloody legacy still felt globally. Yet, his was seen as the “reasonable” face of the party compared to what we see today.
Now, under Trump, the Republican Party has devolved into something more extreme. Trump’s leadership style and ideas have stretched the boundaries of rationality and governance. The current frontrunner is openly discussing using the military to round up and deport millions of people, and his potential vice-presidential candidates seem more concerned with proving their loyalty to him than with advancing any coherent political agenda.
None of the prominent GOP hopefuls seem willing to even entertain the idea of a legitimate 2024 election if Trump doesn’t emerge victorious. For instance, Tim Scott, the South Carolina senator, refused to answer a simple question from journalist Kristen Welker about whether he would accept the 2024 election results. Similarly, Ohio senator J.D. Vance has publicly stated that Congress should not have certified the 2020 election results for Joe Biden. Their silence or outright refusal to acknowledge the legitimacy of the 2020 election only further underscores the entrenched loyalty Trump commands from his party.
Ultimately, the race for the vice-presidency in this Trump-era GOP is less about who can help lead the country and more about who can most completely subjugate themselves to the will of a man who sees himself as a king-like figure, expecting absolute fealty from all who serve him. The fact that the Republican Party has allowed itself to be reduced to this spectacle speaks volumes about its current state.
Trump’s influence over the party and the country remains profound, but the lengths to which his potential vice-presidential picks are willing to go to prove their loyalty show just how far the GOP has fallen under his grip. For those still hoping for a restoration of dignity and reason within the party, these troubling signs suggest that such hopes may be in vain.