Donald Trump's Veepstakes Scorecard: Grades for All the Potential VP Picks

Historically, a Vice-Presidential candidate doesn’t really affect a nominee as much as we think. People vote on the Presidential candidate. With 2016 blowing up everything we know about politics and two potentially unpopular Presidential nominees, the VP choice may play a larger role or at least tell us the direction the nominee is taking their campaign.

For Donald Trump, uniting the Republican party is critical. His top priority should be selecting someone whose key role will be to bring in all of the different Republican stakeholder groups. The second priority would be to have political leadership experience to balance out Trump’s business-only persona. Third, this person should be highly respectable and regarded to improve Trump’s overall likability.

There are many popular choices who aren’t in the running as they don’t want to be associated with a Trump candidacy. Nikki Haley, Susana Martinez, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, John Kasich and others would have been great choices, but they will probably bet on a Trump loss or one-term if he wins and would rather take a gamble in 2020.

The following outlines a grade for each potential VP selection for Trump:

(B+) Mike Pence, Governor of Indiana

- In the talks of being a potential Presidential nominee in 2016, Pence’s position in the Indiana religious liberty bill casted him in a negative light nationally. His story of standing up to the PC police though would add to Trump’s message. A respected Congressman and Governor, a VP from the Midwest could help in states like OH, PA, WI, and MI. He’s smart, a great communicator with little baggage, and would be a good counter to Trump’s more aggressive style. If the VP choice is not announced by July 15th, it won’t be Pence as that is the deadline for his re-election in Indiana and state law will not allow him to run for national office during his re-election.

(B+) Newt Gingrich, Former Speaker of the House

- Newt has been defending Trump for quite some time now. He has conservative credentials and knows the inner workings of Washington better than anyone. It may be wiser to go with someone younger than a 73-year-old, but Gingrich is brilliant and would provide the details to the country that Trump can’t seem to deliver. He comes with baggage, but might give Trump enough credibility to solidify more Republican support.

(B) Mary Fallin, Governor of Oklahoma

- Serving her second term as Governor of one of the most conservative states in the country, Fallin could help to unite the Republican party. She also sits as the national co-chair of both the Republican Governors Association and the party's platform. She's tough, with southern charm, and would bring governance to the ticket. She would be a nice complement to the ticket.

(B) Rick Scott, Governor of Florida

- Scott won two elections in the critical state of Florida. If Trump doesn’t win FL, he can’t win the presidency. Rubio would have been the stronger choice, but he’s chosen to run again for his Senate seat. Scott is not overly popular in FL, but could have enough influence and team in FL to help Trump. He also supported Trump early on.

(B-) Scott Brown, Former Senator from Massachusetts

- He won the special election to the Senate after Ted Kennedy died, but lost the seat eventually to Elizabeth Warren. He came close to winning the Senate seat in his new home state of NH in 2014. He would be more of a wild card pick, but has ties to NH, a potential toss-up state. He doesn’t have a long political history, but he’s an outsider like Trump, and likable.

(C+) Jeff Sessions, Senator from Alabama

- Sessions was an early supporter of Trump’s candidacy. A conservative stalwart with limited speaking skills, he doesn’t bring a lot of national appeal to the ticket. While he could solidify conservative support, he doesn’t cast a wide enough net to bring the whole party together. Trump doesn’t need help in the south, so Sessions doesn’t bring any strategic advantage. Sessions is probably Trumps gut pick, but not the team's choice.

(C+) Chris Christie, Governor of New Jersey

- Christie couldn’t build national support for his own Presidential run because he’s a regional candidate. It doesn’t make sense either to pair NY and NJ on a national ticket. Yes, Christie would do a good job of going after Hillary Clinton, but Trump’s doing enough of that on his own. Christie would make a great Attorney General selection and it would be wise for Trump to announce part of his cabinet during the convention.

(C) Ben Carson, Former Presidential Candidate

- For a while, Ben Carson was second only to Donald Trump in the polls. His lack of political experience though cost him after terrorism and foreign policy became major focuses of the primary. He also isn’t a great speaker and had issues articulating his positions. He might get a second look with the racial tensions currently, but would be a solid cabinet appointment.

Wild-Card Picks:

(B-) Tom Cotton, Senator from Arkansas

- Only elected to the Senate in 2014, he is an unapologetic conservative and growing in popularity amongst the base. Former military and well spoken on the issues, he’d be a better choice if Trump wanted to go young.

(B-) Mia Love, Congresswoman from Utah

- Gained national attention after speaking at the Republican National Convention in 2012 and becoming the first African-American female Congresswoman in the 2014 election. A risk only being in Congress for two years, but would be an intriguing choice.

(C+) Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn

- A 33-year Army veteran and former director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, Flynn would be a signal that the Trump campaign is going to focus on foreign policy and national security. A registered democrat who’s pro-abortion, Flynn is not the right choice to unite the party, but would be an interesting pick.

Grades of Candidates Who Aren’t Likely Interested

(A-) Nikki Haley, Governor of South Carolina

- Would have made a solid VP, but she could make a big run in 2020.

(B+) Marco Rubio, Senator from Florida

- Gained momentum during his Presidential run, but getting off message killed his candidacy. Lots of potential and would have been solid to bring the party together.

(B+) John Kasich, Governor of Ohio

- Ohio is a critical state and I would put it in the Trump column if Kasich was on the ticket. He would also do a good job in being the voice to bring the party together.

(B+) Condolezza Rice, Former Secretary of State

- Highly respected among Republicans and people have wanted her to run for national office for years.

(B+) Scott Walker, Governor of Wisconsin

- Once seen as a potential frontrunner for the nomination, bad campaign decisions ended his campaign early. Would certainly help unite the party and would be a solid VP pick.

(B) John Thune, Senator from South Dakota

- An attractive, soft-spoken Senator with a lovely family, who is respected in the party. A fresh face that balances out Trump might be exactly what this ticket needs.

(B) Susana Martinez, Governor of New Mexico

- The only Hispanic female Governor and Trump bashed her while speaking in New Mexico. Dumb move on his part as she would have been an intriguing option.

(B) Ted Cruz, Senator from Texas

- He was supposed to be the outsider candidate before Trump got in the race. He’d bring a lot of conservatives back into the fold and articulate Trump’s message effectively, but has a likability problem too.

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