Trump Picks His Running Mate — and Political Heir

from New York Times I'm Michael babro. this is the. daily today on the first day of the. Republican National Convention Donald. Trump makes his choice of a running mid. we watched it unfold in real time from. Milwaukee it's Tuesday July 16th.

you okay I'm getting phone interference. oh no maybe that's from your phone. there's like 16 phones of this car SM. okay it is 9:35 a.m. on Monday morning. and we are driving into downtown. Milwaukee to the headquarters of the. Republican National Convention and it's. day one the opening hours of what will. be the Republican party's crowning of. their nominee former president Donald. Trump and the singular event that hangs.

over this entire convention is the one. that none of us expected which is the. attempted. assassination of the presumptive. Republican. nominee and the news is just flying at. us this morning we just got word that. he's going to be announcing his running. mate today his choice of a VP so this is. pretty extraordinary day already at. before 10: a.m. and we're going to try. to make sense of it all.

[Music]. we just went through the first round of. Secret Service asking to see our badges. we are now stopped at a giant metal. popup. wall and in front of us cars are being. slowly and very thoroughly inspected by. bomb sniffing dogs and security. teams and Hi H you guys are good you. just have to get scen through the.

checkpoint thank you Secret Service open. the the engine off pop the hood for me. please y oh the FR how do I do that. we're in a rental C here we go she's got. it look at her and also don't run to my. barricade people keep doing that even. though it says stop on it you know keep. your eyes open all righty be safe. everybody great thank you so. much so we're headed in deeper security. your sunglasses can you back up for me. real quick.

Michael yeah good good to go Carlos good. to go and Rachel good to go thank you. there wasn't a single package inside. that bag that they didn't search hi. check in over here thank you guys for. coming good. morning I can take who next once we made. it through all that security we walked. into the first official event of the day. a briefing for reporters from the Trump. campaign about what this first day of. the convention would look like. [Music].

so we're inside a very big Ballroom that. has a Podium and two flags set up next. to it Wisconsin United States there's. about I don't know 200 journalists in. here filling a quarter of the room and a. lot of redshirted RNC staffers and. volunteers who are kind of coring. us and we're going to wait and see what. they have to. say but just as this briefing was about.

to begin we were told that it was for. planning purposes only and that we. couldn't use any of the audio from. it I just want to summarize what we. heard in this news conference. essentially what senior advisors to the. Trump campaign just told us is that this. day is going to be very action-packed it. is going to begin in the early afternoon. with the official technical nomination. by delegates of of trump as the.

Republican nominee and then in the early. afternoon around 3:00 or. so the nomination of a vice presidential. candidate will occur what that means is. that sometime between now 10:30 a.m. or. so and 3 p.m. we will know the identity. of who Trump's running mate will be and. finally we are going to lay eyes on. Donald Trump's himself at around 9900.

p.m. in the evening and the crowd is. going to go wild because it's the first. time many of them many of us will have. seen him since the assassination attempt. so it's a really packed schedule filled. with a giant piece of news in the middle. which is who Trump picked as his running. mate Mike. Bender hello to get inside Trump's. decisionmaking we turn to our colleague. Mike Bender a politics reporter at the.

Times who's been on the VP beat for the. past few months um okay we just want to. bug you for a minute about what is the. status of the VP Choice last time we. talked to you yeah you told us that. there were three top contenders Doug. bergham Governor North Dakota Florida. Senator mocha Rubio and Ohio Senator JD. Vance so like where do things sit here. at. 11: at noon on uh Monday uh just hours. before he's actually supposed to make. the Ann and nominate the running mate I.

mean I literally ran into a couple of. sources who are with other VP contenders. who were telling me that they haven't. received word one way or the other yet I. don't think he's told the person yet I. mean we're 3 hours from a nomination I'm. I seriously do not think that Trump has. actually made the formal offer. yet we have to like I think we have to. just like explain that to people we're 3. hours from the necessary public. disclosure of this information and it's. not clear that the decision has been.

made yeah no it it's amazing I mean. Trump is known to vacillate over big. decisions he did almost the same thing. back in 2016 when he picked Mike Pence. he decided to pick Mike Pence and then. spent the night before their first news. conference together complaining to AIDS. that he had made the wrong choice. wondering if he could pick someone. differently my reporting over the last. week has been that he's been going. through similar iterations on this. decision so we're going to lightly stalk. you until we get the news and hopefully.

when we get the news you can break it to. us or it will be broken over our over. our heads and we'll and then we'll talk. about it it we make sense of yeah. definitely uh I I am also hoping to be. the first to know and if I'm the first. to know you guys will be the second to. know okay thank you Michael. [Music]. yeah just as we finished talking to Mike. he made a phone call hey you don't think. why why don't you think it's it's Marco.

he called like just. now okay I just saw some folks outside. who who from for another Contender who. who they haven't heard anything yet so I. mean that and that was 30 minutes ago so. I'm wondering if it's like happening now. it's no I didn't see that. okay okay okay thanks. bye so can you just tell us about that. phone call you had yeah yeah definitely. this was uh someone who is very close. with one of the VP contenders one of the. final three this Contender just received. a call from Trump's team saying he's not.

the. pick soon enough Mike confirmed that. Marco Rubio had been crossed off the VP. list and that Rubio wasn't the only VP. Contender to receive that. call so it's 1:30 p.m. and this is a. little unorthodox but I'm peeking over. the shoulder of my colleague Mike bender. and I can see that he's writing the. following yeah I both Doug bergham and.

marubio have been told that they are not. Trump's VP choice so in real time. assuming that this is right we're left. thinking that the choice is either JD. Vance or some wild card person who we. haven't even thought. [Music]. of ladies and gentlemen we are about to. begin a very important part of our. program I would like to ask that the.

aisles be cleared and the delegates. please take their seats thank you in the. meantime the official business of this. convention began the nomination of trump. as the Republican. nominee Michael tell me what's happening. okay so at this point 2 p.m. the roll. call of delegates is underway on the. floor of the convention homeall West. Virginia 32 delegates so what's. happening right now is that the.

delegates from each state are publicly. pledging their support to Donald Trump. and the delegates from each state. represent the outcome of the primary. vote that happened many many months ago. so like right now West Virginia's you. know a designated speaker with a red. hard hat on is saying from the great. state of West Virginia and to cast those. 32 votes for our former and future. president Donald J. Trump are pledging our 32 delegates to.

Donald Trump and on and on and on it. will go and so this is a formality. adding up all the delegates from all the. states but it's actually a technically. required component of Donald Trump. becoming and accepting his party's. nomination and Trump will become the. official nominee when. 1,215 delegates in this room have. pledged their support to him which will. probably be in about like 30 minutes I. stand before you today. on behalf of the great state of New.

Hampshire and after Trump is. nominated this entire exercise happens. all over again for his running mate. whose identity we still don't know so. that's where a lot of the suspense of. this moment is not in the obvious fact. that Donald Trump's about to be. nominated but that everyone in this room. is about to nominate a running mate that. they don't know the identity of that we. don't know the identity of and we have. to know the identity of it before it. happens.

and all of a sudden after not knowing. how or when we would learn Trump's. choice we finally do and it's delivered. in classic Trump fashion um so I've just. seen on true social that Trump has. announced his VP pick and it is JD Vance. of Ohio. okay daily editor Rachel quester. breaking breaking the news that it's. Vance which we kind of thought it would. be but now we know.

after the break Vance's nomination and. why Trump picked. [Music]. him we'll be right. back okay so we're. walking to the convention hall it's a. bit of a track it's very hot. outside and blazingly bright. and we are now entering the media.

doorway how are you thank you uh where. trying to again to the floor to the okay. just right out there and then somebody. on Direct you. okay around 3:30 or so we walked out. onto the convention floor just as Vance. was being nominated as Trump's running. [Applause]. M all right time for a little convention. business here.

the question is on the motion that. Senator JD Vance be nominated by. acclamation this room is about to all. those compl the nomination signify by. saying all those opposed signify by. saying no in the opinion of the chair. the eyes have it and the motion is. adopted without objection the motion to. reconsider is laid upon the. table and just to give you a little bit. of a sense of the feel of the room JD. Vance is smiling really wide he's. leaning back he's laughing crowd is.

chanting JD JD and he seems a little. Ladi gent the proud to announce that. Senator JD Vance has the overwhelming. support of this convention to be the. next Vice President of the United. States and that's that JD Vance Vice. Presidential nominee we got to get out. of. here. the when that was over we headed back to. where Mike Bender was working to talk to.

him about Trump's. choice so welcome to the Daily Studio. here in Milwaukee okay awesome can we. close this door you can shut that. [Music]. yeah Mike you ready yep so if you. believe that Donald Trump made this. decision as we think he did kind of the. last minute even if he'd been thinking. about it for a long time what's your.

understanding of why he chose JD vson I. think Trump is making this pick on who. he thinks gives him the best chance to. win in November he announced this. decision in a truth social post and. mentioned a couple of key States in that. statement essentially saying that he. thinks Vance can help him win in. Pennsylvania in Michigan Wisconsin these. are essential States for victory in. November both for Trump and President. Biden Trump won them in 2016 but lost to. Biden in those same States in 2020 H.

he's very openly saying I have made a. strategic Choice what's interesting. about that Mike is that in our. conversation a couple weeks ago when we. talked about who Trump was looking at. closely you had said that he wasn't. thinking about these traditional. questions of does my VP win me xstate y. State you know he was engaging in. questions of personal Rapport and he got. along really well with Doug bergham so. clearly the Strategic question became. front of mind for Trump and I just want.

to understand was there something in the. race that changed that made him suddenly. think about this or what well well well. look at the daily factchecking its. reporters here on air well you're not. wrong either Michael there has been a. shift in the last few weeks with Trump. he's gone from talking about finding a. running mate who could help him govern. to finding a running mate who can help. him govern and someone who can help him. win and when he ran the analysis here. when he looked at the different set of. candidates he has his ultimate decision. was that JD Vance is the one who can do.

that Vance will take him deeper into the. states where he needs to win in the. Midwest and appeal directly to the. working class Blue Collar voters he. needs to capture these Battlegrounds. explain exactly why he thinks JD Vance. helps him win those three or so key. States what is it about Vance's story. that maps on to that strategy the answer. is both biographical and rooted in. policy Vance is a child of Appalachia. you grew up in a a poor workingclass.

neighborhood in Ohio he served in the. military and when he decided to run for. his first elected office in 2022 he was. very far right on a lot of issues he is. one of the most staunch anti-abortion. voices in the Senate right now he's an. economic populist a sort of anti-trade. isolationist it was one of the first. voices urging the Senate to vote against. aid for Ukraine at a time where his. party leaders were. supporting that so for Trump when it.

comes to selling the idea of trumpism. and magism JD Vance is a very effective. Communicator for him particularly in a. crucial area of the country that if. Trump wins some of these Midwestern. states could mean the end of Biden's. president got it so we should see this. decision As Trump picking someone who is. ideologically extremely aligned with him. perhaps even a little further to the. right than Trump an issue like abortion. and from and of the place in the country.

that Trump needs to win the Midwest. Appalachia and that combination means. for Trump Vance yeah exactly I think. it's also helpful to kind of put this in. the context of the other contenders. right Vance is not bringing a new piece. of the puzzle to trumpism Marco Rubio. the senator from Florida would have been. a Spanish-speaking Advocate who who may. appeal more to Latinos Governor Doug. bergam from North Dakota could have. helped settle down that Pro bus. Republicans who are nervous about. Trump's. unpredictability Trump is sort of.

signaling here that he's not interested. in adding to the party he doesn't want. to make the tent bigger he's doubling. down on this sort of white working class. proa piece of the party that he sees not. just as a way to win in November but. very clearly the path of for the party. in the future of all the candidates. Trump was thinking about for VP and. we've talked about this with you they. went on a journey right from Trump. skeptic to Trump supporter but J D. Vance's Journey stood out because he was. so unstinting in his criticism of trump.

when Trump first entered the political. scene back in 2016 I remember. interviewing Vance and talking to him. about this stuff I mean he compared. Trump to Hitler he called Trump the. opioid of the masses he suggested Trump. was a con man that's a lot to overcome. but he did but he did I mean this is the. most stunning 180 degree political. flip-flop of our time to go from saying. the sort of things that you just brought. up to now being chosen as his most Trust. Ed adviser a running mate a number two.

who will serve as president if something. should happen to him is extraordinary I. mean you may have to go back to. postrevolutionary times when we used to. pick Vice Presidents by who came in. second place to find a vice president. who has said such searing criticisms of. of a president fascinating and. ultimately what's your understanding of. why Trump could get past that somebody. who's not very good at yeah accepting. criticism no that's true but as much as. Trump hates critic ISM for his own.

actions and deeds he loves the. Redemption narrative and he loves being. asked for forgiveness and JD Vance has. spent several years seeking Trump's. approval by going on television making. nice with all of the right-wing websites. and media in order to show how much he. has changed his mind on Trump and maybe. most effectively blame the media that. point has been proven by Vance himself. who has explained his new thinking his. Evolution on Trump by saying he was lied. to by a media narrative about Trump and.

now that he's gotten to know Trump now. that he's seen him Trump in action as. president he's changed his mind right. and it sounds like he never really. needed to change his mind about some of. the fundamental ideas of trumpism he had. to change his mind about Trump he seems. always to have been fundamentally. aligned with the ideas that Trump. Embraces economic populism some pretty. far-right social positions he needed to. change his mind on the man not the. message yeah it was very personal I. think for both Trump and Vance in this. instance again Vance is someone who grew.

up in rural Ohio whose family is from. Appalachia saw some of the things that. Trump has railed against when it comes. to manufacturing jobs that are being. shipped overseas you know these sort of. pillars and institutions of society that. have failed to uphold their end of the. bargain when it comes to you know. workingclass Blue Collar small town. Americans like fances if you are the. Democrats right now Mike and you're. absorbing this news where do you see the. greatest vulnerabilities are going to. lie for Trump now picking them. Democrats are definitely going to use.

Vance's old words against him this sort. of library of video clips and audio. interviews of Vance going after Trump. but Democrats will also seize on Vance. as an extremist whether that's his. Ardent abortion view uh and support for. a national ban and his willingness to do. what his predecessor Mike Pence wouldn't. Vance has been on record already saying. that he would have blocked the. certification of the 2020 result and. that would have helped overturn that. election right so you're saying one.

simple way that the Biden ticket can go. after Advance is by saying that you will. enable Trump to break the law overturn. the election we should expect that yeah. I think so I mean looking back on what. happened after 2020 the system worked. because there was a lot of people around. Trump who maybe they weren't guardrails. but maybe U more speed bumps and there's. no indication that Vance has any. willingness to play that role in the. next Trump Administration in that vein.

it was pretty widely noted that in the. hours after the attempt at assassination. of Donald Trump we saw JD Vance come out. with a statement it was the most. strongly worded of anyone seeking to be. his VP and it had some factual problems. here's what he said he said today the. attempted assassination is not just some. isolated incident the central premise of. the Biden campaign is that President. Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist. who must be stopped at all costs that. rhetoric LED directly to president. Trump's attempted assassination we.

should say there's no evidence that. that's true we don't know the. motivations of the shooter we don't know. that he consumed any of that rhetoric or. that Vance is even characterizing it. correctly so what should we make of the. fact that Trump chose that running mate. who made that statement in this moment I. think Vance in a lot of ways kind of. embodies the ID of trump and that. instinct to fight and even though the. sort of manufactured statements from the.

campaign are calling for Unity and. calling for peace what Trump really. wants since the attempt of assassination. right that's right what Trump really. wants is someone who is going to keep. fighting you know factual or not I think. this shows the passion and the energy. Trump was looking in at running mate uh. valuing that interest in fighting more. than um interest in unity and peace yeah. or facts on the ground right I want to. end M with something you hinted at. earlier which is when you said that. Trump is looking to Vance to set a path. for the future of the Republican party.

what is that path with Vance as number. two Vance is only 39 years old he's. barely old enough to be president right. 35 is the is the requirement exactly so. he's obviously going to be viewed very. much as the air parent for trumpism. Trump knows this and the signal it's. sending to everyone not just in the. party but the rest of the country is. that any remnants of a debate about. whether this party snaps back to its. sort of pro bus. establishment culture pre the pre-trump.

era is is exactly that it's a pre-trump. era it's over for republicans and when. it's not Trump it's going to be JD Vance. or someone exactly like him right in. other words trumpism is here to stay it. is the Republican party now that I've. chosen JD Vance There's No Going Back. Anymore. Michael thank you Mike this is really. helpful really appreciate it thank you. for having me.

you guys from are you guys from Michigan. yeah we make the daily podcast back at. the convention hall um we wanted to ask. folks from all the big swing States. about the selection of JD Vance about an. hour ago and why what and what you make. of that decision and if you think it's. going to help Trump win this state. absolutely look I think the key thing in. the platform is that it is dedicated to. the Forgotten men and women and that is. the blue collar workers in the flyover.

states JD Vance gets that it was clear. that Republican delegates saw JD Vance. as helping Trump win those key. Midwestern states that will be essential. to Trump winning in November so if. Donald Trump wins Pennsylvania which. we're going to make damn sure he does. we're going to work our ass off you. think that Vance helps him do that yes. and just make sure I want to understand. why CU JD Vance is like the common man. he's like the common guy. and that like Trump they do see Vance as.

the future of trumpism and ni thing is. he's young he's 39 years old do matter. it's good to have somebody young with. somebody that's old in case God forbid. something ever happen to Trump in other. words you already see him as the. successor the inheritor of Trump's. message and and and the party in Maga. yeah he's going to have to carry The. Mantel that's probably what's going to. end up happening Trump's only there for. four years you need somebody afterwards.

for the next eight you need somebody for. the next eight after that okay can. [Music]. I and you're from Wisconsin you're a. delate from Wisconsin this is important. Trump mentioned Wisconsin and announcing. Vance why was Vance your number one. choice uh I think he brings youth to the. field to the uh vice president and uh I. I looked at the upcoming years in 28. what'll happen. and I think he he was the man that can.

do it in 28 for the Republican party. you're already looking forward to the. next race yes very much. [Music]. so we'll be right. back here's what else you need to know. today in a stunning decision the judge. overseeing Trump's classified documents.

case threw out all the charges against. him in the process she rejected what was. widely seen as the strongest federal. charges against the former president. judge Eileen Cannon a trump appointee. ruled that the special counsel who filed. the charges had been given his job in. violation of the. Constitution that finding flew in the. face of previous Court decisions reach. ing back decades in response the.

Department of Justice said that it plans. to appeal Canon's. [Music]. ruling today's episode was produced by. Carlos PR Claire tennis getter Jessica. Chong M Sadi Eric krupy and Ricky nety. it was edited by Brendan kinken BG and. Rachel quester with help from Paige cow. contains original music by Dan Powell. Alicia. and Maran Lozano and was engineered by.

Alyssa Moxley our theme music is by Jim. runberg and Ben lansberg of. [Music]. [Applause]. wonderly that's it for the daily I'm. Michael buaro see you tomorrow. [Music].