With former President Donald Trump all but becoming the presumptive Republican presidential nominee in the 2024 general election, just about every single political pundit, operative, wannabee political know-it-all, and TV talking head, is speculating on who the former president will pick as his running mate, and Senator Marco Rubio’s name is on everyone’s mind.
Of the list of potential vice presidential candidates that President Trump may be considering, North Dakota Kristi Noem, Sens. Tim Scott, and Marco Rubio, could all be seen as the frontrunners for the job.
But while Sen. Scott and Gov. Noemi would be considered sound picks, Sen. Rubio being tapped as VP makes more sense, considering that Rubio can drive Trump’s message in both English and Spanish, and in Spanglish if he has to.
Remember, President Trump is all about loyalty, and Sen. Rubio was arguably the most loyal ally President Trump had during his first term in office.
Sen. Rubio has a unquestionable track record of loyalty to his colleagues in the Senate, his family, and friends, some of whom have run, or have held an elected office.
Is there love lost between Sen. Rubio and President.Trump?
Most people will point to the contentious 2016 Republican presidential primary election where Trump labeled Rubio as “Little Marco” and Rubio questioned the former Commander-in-Chief’s manhood by questioning the size of his hands.
According to Rubio and Trump, that was all put in the past, as both men partnered and worked very closely together during Trump’s first term in office, as Rubio helped frame Trump’s entire Western Hemisphere foreign policy, as well as helping on other foreign and domestic issues.
"We’ve had a great working relationship — we ran against each other, so at one point we were competitors — but since 2016, especially when he was president, we worked really well together," Rubio once told POLITICO.
Rubio once told The Floridian that he was grateful for the opportunities he was given by former president and his administration to develop domestic and foreign policies.
Rubio was instrumental in helping Trump beef up his foreign policy bona fides, and in conversations and interviews with The Floridian over the past several years and during the Trump years, Rubio divulged that he had taken a broader foreign policy role with the administration.
But Rubio's legislative footprint was not solely made on foreign policy.
With the help of his daughter Ivanka, Trump signed into law one of Rubio’s legacy pieces of legislation, his child Tax Credit measure wih Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) that was included in the broader American Rescue Plan during the COVID pandemic, as well as the PPP program Rubio assisted in drafting that helped save American small business during onset of the pandemic.
In addition, Rubio’s VA reform bill was one of the bills first signed in law.
But while Rubio had a hand in several key domestic policy legislative measures, his work with the Trump administration on foreign policy placed him on a level beyond reproach by any other Republican lawmaker, let alone any potential 2028 Republican presidential candidate.
Aside from his work in the Western Hemisphere, Rubio played a significant role in Trump’s China policy.
Rubio has led the charge against China, authoring legislative measures against Tik Tok, and including an effort to revamp the U.S. relationship with Hong Kong after China took it over.
In addition, Rubio penned and helped pass his Secure Equipment Act, a bill that prevents the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from spying on Americans through companies like Huawei and ZTE, by preventing the U.S. government from extending new equipment licenses to Chinese companies.
During an interview with The Floridian in his Washington, D.C. office, Rubio contrasted the Trump administration with that of President Joe Biden, expressing his position that the country was safer under a Trump presidency than under President Biden.
“Even people that don’t like what Trump says have to admit that the country was safer, more respected, we didn’t have a mass migration crisis, our economy was better, all these things when Trump was in office,” said Rubio. “I think there are a lot of people that are like, no matter what we may feel about what he said about this or that, our lives were better and the country was safer,” said Rubio.
In talking about the fluid political makeup of the of Latin America,Rubio, added that under the Biden administration's foreign policy, the “unity in the region” has splintered and that many countries have now “flipped” from being Democratic to now being controlled by Socialist or Leftist presidents and governments.
“We went from having a unity in the region that aligned with our views, including the Caribbean, to now a bunch of countries that have flipped, and a bunch of countries that want to be friendly to the United States that feel like this administration treats their friend bad, and their enemies good,” he said.
Is Rubio open to be VP?
In a recent interview, Rubio stated that it would be an “honor” to run and serve as Trump’s vice president.
“I’m in the Senate because I want to serve the country. Being vice president is an important way to serve the country. I’ve also been clear. I’ve never talked to Donald Trump or talked to anybody on his team or family or inner circle about vice president. That’s the decision he’s going to make. He’s got plenty of really good people to pick from," Rubio said.
Ron DeSantis
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is considered by many to be the favorite to become the 2028 Republican presidential nominee after gaining significant support from Republican voters during the 2024 presidential primary election, before losing by 20 points in the Iowa Caucuses to President Trump, and then quitting the race altogether.
Gov. DeSantis was rumored to be on a list of potential vice presidential running mates for Trump, but let’s just throw a quick bucket of water on that idea, considering the rumored disdain Trump is said to have for DeSantis because he ran for president against him.
DeSantis has also said that he would be anyone’s presidential running mate.
Both Rubio and DeSantis could be paving the road for a potential 2028 GOP presidential primary cage match, but if Rubio is tapped to be VP, and if Trump wins the presidency, the married father of 4 children and 3 Golden Doodles would be the odds-on favorite in 2028.
Rubio running with Trump could also help DeSantis preserve his political career.
DeSantis is term-limited out of the Governor’s Mansion in 2026, Rubio’s Senate term ends in 2028.
If Rubio becomes Trump’s VP pick DeSantis could appoint himself to finish out the senators second term or pick a placeholder for him, which is what then-Governor Charlie Crist did in 2009 when Sen. Mel Martinez stepped down from the U.S. Senate.
DeSantis would need the senatorial bully pulpit to help finance a 2028 presidential run.
Again, this is all hypothetical, and just the thought of how many moving political pieces would be in play if this scenario were to happen is dizzying to say the least.
DeSantis going to the Senate would upset the apple cart a good year or two before one of the wheels would first come off, and potential gubernatorial candidates like Reps. Michael Waltz, Matt Gaetz, and Byron Donalds, as well as AG Ashley Moody, CFO Jimmy Patronis, and AG Commission Wilton Simpson, would all have to move up their 2026 plans.
The Constitution
Many Americans believe that two men from the same state cannot run for President and Vice President.
The answer is a resounding, maybe.
There isn’t a law or regulation that prevents Trump and Rubio from running together, but there is language in Article II of the Constitution that could muddy up the waters.
Article II states: “The electors shall meet in their respective states, and vote by ballot for two persons, of whom one at least shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves.”
If picked, it would be a heavy, almost impossible lift for Rubio to rescind his Florida residency just to be the VP pick.
However, it would be a lot easier for Trump to change his residen y considering that he was properties all over the nation, particularly his home in Bedminster, New Jersey.
Does the U.S. Constitution prevent Trump and Rubio from running on the same ticket because they both reside from the same state?
