Donald Trump listed three of his current and formal presidential primary rivals — Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and Ohio Gov. John Kasich — as potential vice presidential picks on Monday, eliciting a laugh from Walker.
Trump discussed who he might select to run with him if he wins the Republican nomination in an interview with USA Today’s Kristen Powers published on Monday.
“There are people I have in mind in terms of vice president. I just haven’t told anybody names. … I do like Marco. I do like (John) Kasich. … I like (Scott) Walker actually in a lot of ways. I hit him very hard. … But I’ve always liked him,” Trump said. “There are people I like, but I don’t think they like me because I have hit them hard.”
Trump listed Walker as a potential vice president shortly after he attacked the governor leading up to the Wisconsin primary. In March, Trump said that Wisconsin “is doing very poorly” under Walker’s leadership.
Walker described Trump’s comments to USA Today as “almost breathtaking.”
“I literally just heard it in the car and I said — I laughed — it’s kind of interesting to hear that after the things that were said about me a couple weeks ago,” Walker told reporters in Wisconsin on Monday, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “But I’m focused on being the governor of the state of Wisconsin. … That’s not even on my radar and it certainly wouldn’t be with — I guess I was shocked more than anything to hear that.”
“I can’t even fathom that. Like I said, it’s almost breathtaking that I was listed in the first place,” Walker added.
