Former President Trump on Friday threw cold water on the idea of picking former United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley as a running mate, hours after she herself appeared to nix the idea of joining his ticket.
“She is OK, but she is not presidential timber. And when I say that, that probably means she is not going to be chosen as the vice president,” Trump, who is the dominant front-runner for the GOP nomination, said at a rally in Concord, N.H., drawing applause from the crowd.
“When you say certain things, it sort of takes them out of play, right?” he added. “I can’t say, ‘She’s not of the timber to be the vice president’ and then say, ‘Ladies and gentleman, I’m proud to announce that I’ve picked.'”
Haley, who is Trump’s closest rival in the polls in New Hampshire, has repeatedly said she is not running for second place in the GOP primary — but had previously declined to specifically comment on whether she’d be the former president’s running mate.
Earlier Friday, Haley appeared to more definitively nix the idea, telling a group of voters being vice president was “off the table.”
Haley’s momentum in the GOP race, where her poll numbers steadily climbed in recent months, has fueled speculation that she could be a contender as Trump’s No. 2. Some Republicans, like former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), had suggested Haley would be a good pick to balance out the former president’s weaknesses as a candidate.
Some in Trump’s orbit, including Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), his son Donald Trump Jr. and former adviser Steve Bannon, said choosing Haley as a running mate would lead to a revolt among his most ardent supporters.
But sources close to Trump downplayed the idea that he was ever seriously considering her, and he has in recent weeks levied personal attacks against his former Cabinet member, that included sharing a false birther conspiracy.
The New Hampshire rally comes as Granite State voters prepare to cast their votes in the first-in-the-nation primary next week. Trump is still leading Haley by just over 10 percent, according to the most recent polling average from The Hill/Decision Desk HQ.