President Donald Trump pushed back on reports that he’s told GOP donors that Vice President JD Vance is his preferred successor in 2028.
Reporters asked Trump whether he was publicly advocating a Vance run during an Oval Office event on ending birthright citizenship on Thursday.
“I heard about it a little while ago,” Trump said. “I think he’s great, but we’re way too early to even be thinking about that”
Both Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are seen as front-runners for the GOP nomination from within Trump’s Cabinet.
Neither Vance nor Rubio has yet announced a presidential bid. Both men remain close allies, and Rubio has even gone as far as to say he would not run against Vance in 2028. People close to Vance previously told the Washington Examiner that the president was not expected to make a decision on a White House bid until after the midterm elections.
The Washington Post reported earlier this week that during a July White House meeting with Republican donors, Trump actively lobbied the room to throw its weight behind the vice president.
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“At the end of the day, we need to elect JD,” Trump told the room, according to the Washington Post’s sources.
Both the White House and Vance’s office declined to comment on reports.