When I first ranked former President Donald Trump’s top 10 vice presidential picks back in August, I had Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) at No. 3 behind Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and Byron Donalds (R-FL).
But after Stefanik’s performance on Meet the Press this Sunday, I’m moving her to No. 1.
She was poised, confident, and well prepared. Most importantly, she didn’t give an inch when defending Trump on any issue.
Here was her answer on whether Trump was a threat to democracy: “When it comes to threats to democracy, Joe Biden and Democrats are a threat to democracy. We see them attempting to remove President Trump from the ballot. We saw this in Colorado and Maine. That is the suppression of the American people and the American people’s ability to cast their ballots this November.”
On whether those convicted for rioting on Jan. 6 are “hostages” as Trump has claimed: “I have concerns about the treatment of January 6th hostages. I have concerns — we have a role in Congress of oversight over our treatments of prisoners. And I believe that we’re seeing the weaponization of the federal government against not just President Trump, but we’re seeing it against conservatives.”
On whether she would promise to vote to certify the 2024 presidential election results: “We will see if this is a legal and valid election. What we’re seeing so far is that Democrats are so desperate, they’re trying to remove President Trump from the ballot. That is a suppression of the American people.”
And then finally, and most importantly, if she would say “yes” if Trump asked her to be his vice president: “I’ve said for a year now I’d be honored to serve in the next Trump administration.”
Coming off of her huge victories over the presidents of Harvard University and the University of Pennsylvania, Stefanik has significantly raised her profile among GOP voters. She’s young. She’s married. She’s a mother. She has ably served in House Republican leadership. She is a woman who has the potential to ease the fears of college-educated suburban women who abandoned Trump in droves in 2020.
A lot can happen between now and the Republican National Convention this July. But for now, the vice presidential nomination is Stefanik’s to lose.