{"id":2519494,"date":"2025-12-10T04:46:01","date_gmt":"2025-12-10T09:46:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-plays-coy-again-on-2028-gop-successor\/"},"modified":"2025-12-10T04:47:54","modified_gmt":"2025-12-10T09:47:54","slug":"trump-plays-coy-again-on-2028-gop-successor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-plays-coy-again-on-2028-gop-successor\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump plays coy again on 2028 GOP successor"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftrump-plays-coy-again-on-2028-gop-successor%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2519494&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses former President Donald Trump&#8217;s current role in shaping the Republican Party&#8217;s 2028 presidential field amid his looming &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/illinois-criminal-justice-system-reform-law-criticized-by-police\/\" title=\"Illinois Criminal Justice System Reform Law Criticized By Police\">lame-duck<\/a>&#8221; period. Although Trump has more than three years remaining in his term, he has refrained from explicitly endorsing any potential successors, such as Vice President JD Vance or Senator Marco Rubio, instead praising the overall strength of the Republican bench.In a recent interview, Trump emphasized the need to test leaders&#8217; ability to lead, highlighting his confidence in his current Cabinet without naming a clear heir to his MAGA coalition.<\/p>\n<p>trump&#8217;s reluctance to fully endorse anyone is seen as a strategic move to maintain influence over the party and ensure loyalty, as well as to <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >avoid fueling intra-party rivalries<\/a>. GOP insiders note that while Vance embodies a more aggressive MAGA style, Rubio projects a more serious and mature image, and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis may combine both approaches. Other potential candidates, like Senator Ted Cruz, are also rumored to be preparing for a 2028 run.<\/p>\n<p>following recent GOP election losses in New Jersey and Virginia, Vance has called on the party to motivate voters by offering a compelling vision beyond trump&#8217;s presence on the ballot. Meanwhile, Trump aims to stay active through the midterms and remain a key figure in shaping the party&#8217;s future, leaving the 2028 nomination contest wide open and competitive.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Trump plays kingmaker with 2028 field as lame-duck era looms<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2424615\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\">Donald Trump<\/a>, with over three years left in his term, has refrained from passing the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/maga\/\">MAGA<\/a> baton to any of his possible successors, keeping his looming lame-duck status at bay.<\/p>\n<p>Despite signaling that Vice President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/jd-vance\/\">JD Vance<\/a> and Secretary of State <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/marco-rubio\/\">Marco Rubio<\/a> could be the heirs to his coalition, Trump this week evaded pointing to either man directly, simply saying he believes Republicans have a strong bench for 2028.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3912874\/trump-new-york-times-health-stamina-treasonous\/\">Trump says New York Times questioning his stamina could be &#8216;treasonous&#8217;<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3912858\/trump-ilhan-omar-turban-somalia\/\">Trump mocks Ilhan Omar&#8217;s &#8216;turban&#8217; in latest anti-Somali tirade<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3912580\/trump-affordability-speech-pennsylvania\/\">Trump rips Biden and Democrats over affordability in Pennsylvania: &lsquo;Like Bonnie and Clyde preaching public safety&rsquo;<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>In a recent interview with <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/2025\/12\/09\/donald-trump-full-interview-transcript-00681693?nid=0000014f-1646-d88f-a1cf-5f46b7bd0000&amp;nname=playbook&amp;nrid=00000168-ddbb-d450-a7e9-fdbfac350000\"><em>Politico<\/em><\/a>, Trump praised his <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/cabinet\/\">Cabinet<\/a> members but did not name a single person who could energize the coalition that propelled him to the White House for a second time.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know. You never know until they&rsquo;re tested,&rdquo; Trump said. &ldquo;You know, it&rsquo;s like, uh, you jump in the water; you can swim or you can&rsquo;t. Some people can swim, and some people can&rsquo;t. You never know. You have to see.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I think we have a very good bench,&rdquo; he continued. &ldquo;We have a great Cabinet. I have a really great Cabinet &mdash; better than my first Cabinet. I had some very good people in my first cabinet, but this cabinet, you know, I have much more experience.&rdquo; <\/p>\n<p>The president&rsquo;s comments were notable given his <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/in_focus\/3851169\/trump-vance-rubio-others-success-competition-2028\/\">past predilection for sharing the spotlight<\/a> with several of his Cabinet and, at times, ceding press attention to them. Trump has pointed to Vance, and Rubio to a lesser extent, as &ldquo;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3491724\/trump-maga-heir-apparent-jd-vance\/\">most likely<\/a>&rdquo; to become the MAGA successor. At the last Cabinet meeting of 2025, Trump praised Vance&rsquo;s dominant 2024 debate performance against Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN), then running for vice president.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3891838\/vance-warns-gop-give-voters-something-believe-without-trump\/\">VANCE WARNS GOP NEEDS TO GIVE VOTERS SOMETHING TO &lsquo;BELIEVE IN&rsquo; WITHOUT TRUMP ON BALLOT<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I think the man&rsquo;s a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-blasts-tim-walz-and-ilhan-omar-over-somali-fraud-scheme\/\" title=\"... blasts Tim Walz and Ilhan Omar over Somali fraud scheme\">grossly incompetent man<\/a>. I thought that from the day I watched JD destroy him,&rdquo; Trump said of Walz last week. <\/p>\n<p>However, as Trump enters an era where the GOP is looking to 2028, dangling a full-throated endorsement is a surefire way to push back against lame-duck-era allegations.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Trump also wants to play Kingmaker,&rdquo; said Matt Dole, a Republican political consultant based in Ohio.<em>&nbsp;<\/em>&ldquo;Trump wants to continue to have influence. And that&rsquo;s probably the most important or most interesting part of this entire process is Trump&rsquo;s going to be pretty active through the midterm, and then he&rsquo;s going to pretty quickly become a lame duck.&rdquo; <\/p>\n<p>Dole also said Trump&rsquo;s return to dodging the 2028 successor question is a wise decision.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The president&rsquo;s probably right that the jury is out on who can capture the Trump coalition and keep it going, or if anybody can, I think the jury is probably still out on that,&rdquo; he said.<\/p>\n<p>In the aftermath of GOP losses in New Jersey and Virginia last month, Vance pushed the GOP to give Trump&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/chris-barron-trump-2024-crush-the-establishment\/\" title=\"Chris Barron: ... 2024 - Crush the Establishment\">working-class coalition<\/a> a reason to show up without the president on the ballot.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got to motivate them,&rdquo; Vance <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3891838\/vance-warns-gop-give-voters-something-believe-without-trump\/\">told<\/a> <em>Breitbart<\/em> last month. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got to get them out to vote. I think it&rsquo;s one of the lessons that we learned in Virginia and New Jersey, is that when Donald Trump is not on the ballot, you&rsquo;ve got to give people something to actually believe in, something to be inspired by, to get out there and vote. They&rsquo;re not going to vote just because you have an R next to your name; you&rsquo;ve got to speak to this new working-class coalition.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Vance has also faced <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/opinion\/beltway-confidential\/3874645\/jd-vance-silence-heritage-foundation-nick-fuentes-2028-rivals-opening\/\">some pushback <\/a>over his reticence and call for unity after an intra-party GOP civil war broke out over <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/tucker-carlson\/\">Tucker Carlson<\/a>&lsquo;s cozy sit-down with the controversial Nick Fuentes, who has made antisemitic comments, and Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts&rsquo;s defense of the interview.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">I think it&#8217;s idiotic to overreact to a couple of elections in blue states, but a few thoughts:<\/p>\n<p>1) Scot Pressler, TPUSA, and a bunch of others have been working hard to register voters. I said it in 2022, and I&#8217;ve said it repeatedly since: our coalition is &#8220;lower propensity&#8221; and&hellip;<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; JD Vance (@JDVance) <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/JDVance\/status\/1986099131845136594?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 5, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script> <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>However, Trump&rsquo;s hesitation to name Vance or Rubio likely has less to do with any GOP infighting and more to do with the president &ldquo;making sure that everyone is beholden to him and not wanting to have someone in his court angling or those people that hold court &hellip; maneuvering behind his back or moving past him,&rdquo; said Jason Roe, a GOP strategist who has worked on presidential campaigns.<\/p>\n<p>The president may also recognize that, with 2028 set to be an open field, GOP lawmakers outside the White House are itching to launch their own presidential campaigns.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Vance embodies more of the pugnaciousness of MAGA, but I think Marco is more serious. He&rsquo;s more of an adult about his role,&rdquo; said Roe, who worked on Rubio&rsquo;s past presidential campaign. &ldquo;And are we going to be pandering to the manosphere and want the bro-y pugnacious guy, or are we going to want the guy who&rsquo;s on a mission out there to do something, which I think Marco projects a little more. And then you got [Gov. RonDeSantis (R-FL)], who I think can combine a little bit of both of their styles. But does he ever get out from under being the anti-Trump in 2024?&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), a key ally of Trump on Capitol Hill, has also been rumored to be laying groundwork for a 2028 run, although he has denied the allegations.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/in_focus\/3851169\/trump-vance-rubio-others-success-competition-2028\/\">TRUMP SETS UP VANCE, RUBIO, AND OTHERS FOR SUCCESS AND COMPETITION IN LEAD-UP TO 2028<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;In the past six to nine months after the president has been reelected, there&rsquo;s a long list of those looking to speak at the Des Moines Reagan and Lincoln Day dinner,&rdquo; said Brian Seitchik, a national GOP strategist. &ldquo;Because of the unique qualities of this president and his continued stranglehold on the base that open campaigning for 2028 has not yet begun.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s still a lot of runway between now and after the midterms, when that race really kicks off. While the president has shown an interest and a fondness for both Rubio and Vance, there&rsquo;s a lot of game left here for who&rsquo;s going to get that nomination and how this is all going to play out,&rdquo; he added. &ldquo;So I don&rsquo;t read too much into the president&rsquo;s comments [to Politico].&rdquo; <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Trump shapes 2028 GOP field, avoids naming clear successor<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2658,"featured_media":2519495,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/AP25336681863299.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[11331,6203,5894,51749,3634],"class_list":["post-2519494","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-11331","tag-gop","tag-politics","tag-successor-2","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/AP25336681863299.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2519494","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2658"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2519494"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2519494\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2519498,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2519494\/revisions\/2519498"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2519495"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2519494"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2519494"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2519494"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}