Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) said he would be prepared to serve as commander in chief if needed if former President Trump selected him as his running mate.
NBC’s Peter Alexander asked Donalds on “Meet the Press” if he would be prepared to step in as president on “day one” if he was chosen as Trump’s vice president and elected to office. Donalds, who has been floated as a vice presidential hopeful, said he would be ready to take the helm if necessary.
“Look, I think that I would have an ability to step in. I’m actually pretty intelligent. I can sift through issues really, really well. It’s about judgment. It’s about logic streams. It’s about how you make decisions at the end of the day. And then you cannot discount the fact that you would have a lot of people who are very qualified to be around to help you do that job and do what’s in the best interest of the American people,” Donalds said.
“Do I believe in myself? One hundred percent I do. And so, you know, we’ll see what President Trump decides. I’m going to support whatever he does,” he added.
Donalds is one of the many Republicans who are being considered for Trump’s ticket in next November’s election. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) and Sens. JD Vance (R-Ohio), Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) are also included on the vice-presidential shortlist.
Trump said his running mate was “probably” in the room during his meetings with House and Senate Republicans last week.
“I have sort of a pretty good idea,” Trump told Fox News’s Aishah Hasnie. “Look, we have some pretty talented people. I have a pretty good idea.”