Who would be Donald Trump’s vice president?
He still won’t say — but the GOP front-runner divulged Wednesday that it would like be an insider in contrast with his outsider status.
“I do want somebody that’s political, because I want to get lots of great legislation we all want passed,” Trump said Wednesday in a Q&A at Regent University. “We’re going to probably choose somebody that’s somewhat political.”
Trump declined to name any names, saying it’s “too early,” although he did say some of the other GOP presidential candidates might make the short list.
“Some of the people I’ve dealt with, I do have a lot of respect for,” he said the day after he won the Nevada caucuses by a landslide.
Trump said the “main quality” he would seek in a running mate would be someone who could be a “great president” if something were to happen to require that person to step in — but after that, it’s about balancing his political outsider status.
“I’d want someone who could help me with governing,” Trump said. “You want somebody that can help you with legislation, getting it through.”
Trump did note that while his background is in business, that doesn’t mean he’s never dealt with politics.
“I’m also very, very political,” Trump said. “When you can get zoning on the West Side of Manhattan to build almost 6,000 units of housing and you have to go through New York City politics, believe me, that’s tough.”
He compared the difficulty of that business deal to that of brokering a peace agreement between the Israelis and Palestinians.
“It’s about as tough a deal,” he said.
But the “Art of the Deal” author said that presidential achievement would still trump any he’s negotiated as a businessman.
“I view that as the single toughest deal,” he said. “We’re going to give it a shot … A lot of good people have gone down trying to give that one a shot.”