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Understand today's news with Jen Psaki

Saturday, June 15, 2024

Why America needs to be paying a lot more attention to Trump's VP finalists

This week saw a renewed focus on President Joe Biden's age — and potential successor. A Politico/Morning Consult poll asked about Vice President Kamala Harris' ability "to perform the job well were she to inherit it," a not very subtle reference to Biden's longevity. Republicans spent the week spreading deceptively edited videos of Biden designed to make him look frail, turning "innocuous moments ... into attacks on his mental acuity or physical fitness." Earlier in June, a front-page Wall Street Journal article was slammed by critics as biased and shallow.

On the other side of the political aisle, former President Donald Trump turned 78 on Friday. And if we are going to spend all this time analyzing the age and the running mate of the 81-year-old, it does feel like the 78-year-old and his running mate options warrant attention.

Remember, this is the guy who lied about his height to avoid being deemed "obese," a man who slurs his words on the campaign trail and who was seemingly incoherent in his recent meeting with CEOs. Trump's Covid-19 condition was much worse than publicly acknowledged. And let's not forget the way he seemed to struggle to stay awake during his New York "hush money" trial.

One of Trump's top vice presidential prospects is 67-year-old Doug Burgum, whose presidential campaign barely got off the ground before it crashed. Also in the running is author and Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, whose fealty to Trump (whom he once compared to Adolf Hitler) should be disqualifying. There is Florida Sen. Tim Scott, whose capacity for self-humiliation is seemingly boundless.

The strengths and vulnerabilities of Harris should certainly be a part of the conversation. But we should be paying just as much attention to the presidential caliber of Trump's possible running mates. And right now, it's not a pretty picture.

Read more exclusive insights from Jen Psaki here. And tune into "Inside with Jen Psaki" Mondays at 8 p.m. ET, and Sundays at 12 p.m. ET on MSNBC.

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This weekend on MSNBC

SATURDAY

MSNBC's "The Weekend" at 8am ET: Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young… Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison… Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.)
MSNBC's "The Katie Phang Show" at 12pm ET: Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.)… Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.)

SUNDAY

MSNBC's "Inside with Jen Psaki" at 12pm ET: Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.)… Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.)
MSNBC's "PoliticsNation" at 5pm ET: Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.)

*Subject to change