In his latest town hall appearance, Florida’s Gov. Ron DeSantis gave concerned caucus-goers and voters some insight into what personal qualities—or specific people—he was looking for in a would-be vice president.
“I have two main qualities that are non-negotiable,” he said to Gray TV’s Iowa political director Dave Price on Jan. 2. “One, the individual has got to be able to be president if it comes to that.”
No names were dropped that night, but the governor admitted to being partial to other governors because he said he thinks they “have the best training in terms of actually having to make executive decisions” and working with a legislative branch on advancing policies.
“The second thing is it’s got to be somebody that shares our vision,” he said.
DeSantis said he didn’t want to put someone on his ticket, get elected by running on a certain vision for the country, and then have that person end up going a different direction if “something happens to me.”
“I think those two are non-negotiable, and I think those are much more important than some of the other political considerations that get thrown out,” he said. “You need somebody that could do the job and somebody that shares your values.”
Speculation over vice president picks had already begun to circle Mr. DeSantis’s campaign—as well as that of former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and former President Donald Trump—before any caucus or primary vote voiced its say on the presidential candidate.
That includes speculation that Ms. Haley could end up being President Trump’s pick, despite his base’s reported animosity towards her.
Mr. DeSantis has also begun to emphasize more in recent days what he sees as President Trump’s inability to recruit a strong team to get the job done.
“Ultimately, leadership’s about producing results,” he said. “I also think it’s important that you’re able to recruit good people to serve in the administration. You can’t do it by yourself. The president will set the agenda, [and] make the decisions, but you got to have a cadre of good folks there.
“I think the former president had trouble there. I think he had a big trouble recruiting good people if he could even get elected again. I’m gonna have great people around us, and you’re gonna see a big difference.”
Iowa’s first-in-the-nation caucus is scheduled for Jan. 15, and New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary will follow on Jan. 23.
Mr. DeSantis is scheduled to participate in the first of back-to-back Iowa town halls with Ms. Haley on CNN on Jan. 4, and the two are then scheduled to share the stage for a CNN-moderated debate on Jan. 10.
President Trump once again refused to join his fellow republican candidates for that debate.
