(NewsNation) — Paul Manafort expressed his loyalty to former President Donald Trump in a new interview with incoming NewsNation host Chris Cuomo, saying he believes the former president will run again for president in 2024.
Cuomo also asked Manafort about Ron DeSantis and if he thinks Trump can beat the Republican governor.
Although DeSantis has not declared he’s running for president in 2024, he appears to be building his political brand, which is toeing the line between the establishment and MAGA movement.
Manafort responded by saying Trump needs someone like Tim Scott in his corner, not DeSantis.
Former GOP Communications Director Tara Setmayer disagreed, telling NewsNation’s Ashleigh Banfield on Tuesday night that Trump is “probably going to pick a woman” when it comes to his running mate.
“We’ve already seen several Republican women that are vying for Trump’s affection, from Kristi Noem to Elise Stefanik to others.” Setmayer said. “That was an interesting out-of-left-field answer from Manafort.”
There are four Republican women most often mentioned as possible Trump running mates: Nikki Haley, Elise Stefanik, Kristi Noem and Sarah Palin.
Haley is the most prepared on paper. She was the governor of South Carolina and Trump’s ambassador to the United Nations.
But, despite their close working relationship and friendship, they’ve had their differences. In 2016, when Trump was running, Haley said she’d endorse any Republican except Trump.
Stefani has been a congresswoman since 2015 and has made a huge shift to the right since her election. She backed Trump during his impeachment and backed his efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
Noem is nationally known and popular with conservatives, but she took a bit of a hit when she said she’s comfortable with women leaving her state to get an abortion.
Finally, Trump endorsed Palin in her Senate race, and she’s been one of his biggest supporters.
“I don’t think it matters who he picks as his running mate,” former Republican strategist Cheri Jacobus said Wednesday night on “Banfield.” “Trump has a lot of legal problems. He can find himself under indictment, and I suspect that he will be. “