Trump says Texas governor is on shortlist for VP

Former President Trump said Thursday that Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) is “absolutely” on his shortlist for potential running mates, adding to what is becoming an increasingly lengthy list of potential vice presidential picks.

“Absolutely, he is,” Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity in an interview alongside Abbott near the U.S. southern border.

Asked if there were any other names on the list who haven’t been revealed, Trump pivoted to praising Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), who is considered a front-runner to be the former president’s running mate.

“Tim, for himself, he was fine. He did OK. I mean, he was OK as a candidate, but he didn’t want to talk about himself. He’s a very good man,” Trump said. “For me, he’s unbelievable. He’s a surrogate.”

Trump is on track to be the Republican nominee in November, with his campaign projecting that he will have secured the necessary delegates to clinch the nomination by mid-March. He has repeatedly teased who is under consideration to serve as his running mate when asked about potential names.

Fox host Laura Ingraham asked Trump during a recent town hall event if Scott, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) and former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, who served in Congress as a Democrat but has since shifted to more conservative views, were on his list. Trump confirmed all of them were, though it’s unlikely he would select DeSantis, as the former president aggressively attacked the Florida governor during his own 2024 bid.

Others believed to be in the running for the post include Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) and Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R), as well as Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.), who will deliver the GOP response to President Biden’s State of the Union address next week.