Donald Trump retains strong grip on GOP as potential successors seek his support

Although President Donald Trump has not directly said he thinks J D Vance should be the heir to his Make America Great Again base of support he acknowledged this week that his vice president is probably the favourite to succeed him at this pointBut even as he promoted Vance Trump also made sure to mention Secretary of State Marco Rubio telling reporters at the White House on Tuesday that his administrations top diplomat is somebody that maybe would get together with J D in some form on a future political ticketThe remarks reflect the massive influence the Republican president currently has over his party They also serve to promote two of Trumps top advisers without telegraphing the presidents singular preference for a successor Not definitively anointing Vance or any other Republican keeps those hoping to succeed Trump vying for his favour both inside his administration and in the wider Republican field of possible contendersIt is early for the 2028 presidential field to begin forming and other contenders will ultimately emerge A challenge for anyone wading into the race even with strong Trump connections will be staying in the presidents good graces for the durationSpeaking with reporters following an executive order signing at the White House Trump was asked if Vance were the heir apparent to MAGA I think most likely in all fairness he is the vice president Trump said I think Marco is also somebody that maybe would get together with J D in some form It is too early obviously to talk about it but certainly he is doing a great job and he would be probably favoured at this pointWhen Trump selected the then39yearold Vance over other more established Republicans including Rubio as his running mate last year many theorised that Trump was planning for the future of his political movement angling for a vice president who could carry MAGA forward Vance has embraced the role at every turn doing the presidents bidding on everything from his relationship with Ukraine to the fight over records related to the Jeffrey Epstein sextrafficking scandalTrump meanwhile has not hesitated to give Vance highvisibility assignments As the White House promotes middecade redistricting efforts in Texas and acknowledges it would like the notion to expand to other states Vance is expected on Thursday to discuss redrawing district lines with Gov Mike Braun during a trip to Indiana While there Vance will also headline a fundraiser for the Republican National Committee which he serves as treasurerIn June he travelled to Los Angeles to tour a multiagency Federal Joint Operations Centre and a mobile command centre amid clashes between protesters and police and outbreaks of vandalism and looting following immigration raids across Southern CaliforniaAnd earlier this year Vance was in swing congressional districts in his role as lead cheerleader for Trumps signature tax cut and spending law an assortment of conservative priorities that Republicans dubbed the One Big Beautiful Bill He also lobbied senators on Capitol Hill working to swing GOP holdouts to support the legislation and in July cast a tiebreaking vote to get the measure passed in the SenateHe has also taken on a robust role related to foreign policy holding meetings of his own with world leaders including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a trip to New Delhi and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White HouseRubio who has described Vance as among his closest friends in politics said on Fox News Channel on Sunday that he felt Vance would be a great nominee if he decides he wants to do thatOther Republicans mentioned as possible 2028 contenders are already making the rounds of earlyvoting states Virginia Gov Glenn Youngkin speaks at a GOP fundraiser in South Carolina this weekend and Arkansas Gov Sarah Huckabee Sanders headlines an event in that state later this month Both have taken pains to curry the presidents favourNot every Republican contender has gone that route Kentucky Sen Rand Paul who lost the 2016 nomination to Trump has been visiting earlyvoting states too but he voted against the presidents signature legislative measure And Georgia Gov Brian Kemp who has long harboured ambitions to run for president but has a complicated history with Trump recently said he was sitting out of a Senate race in his state a decision telegraphed by some as an indication Kemp might be eyeing the 2028 White House raceThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever