ABC News’ Jonathan Karl on Tuesday said President Donald Trump has “started doing this thing” on board Air Force One where he goes around asking people: “JD or Marco? JD or Marco? JD or Marco?”
It’s a reference to whether Vice President JD Vance or Secretary of State Marco Rubio should be his successor.
Karl pointed to Trump’s question as evidence that the president doesn’t really have “any designs on actually staying past the end of this term” despite his repeated talk of and hints at trying to stay in the White House for an unconstitutional third term.
Trump “tells people privately, people close to him, ‘No, no, I’m, you know, I’m done,’” Karl said on Tuesday’s broadcast of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” while promoting his new book, “Retribution: Donald Trump and the Campaign That Changed America.”
Karl said Trump is “absolutely trolling” with his 2028 talk.
First-term Trump White House chief strategist Steve Bannon “was the one that really started to get this going” and is trolling not just Trump’s critics and Democrats with the idea but Vance too because “privately, not a big JD Vance fan at all,” said Karl.
Host Joe Scarborough suggested Trump’s talk of remaining in power was a way to distract from potential lame duck status. Karl agreed and said he wasn’t sure how Trump “voluntarily goes lame duck.”
Forget BallroomsHelp Build aNewsroom
Your SupportFuelsOur Mission
Your SupportFuelsOur Mission
Become a HuffPost Member
When power gathers under golden ceilings, real journalism stands outside, asking the questions that matter. Join HuffPost Membership and keep independent reporting strong for everyone.
We remain committed to providing you with the unflinching, fact-based journalism everyone deserves.
Thank you again for your support along the way. We’re truly grateful for readers like you! Your initial support helped get us here and bolstered our newsroom, which kept us strong during uncertain times. Now as we continue, we need your help more than ever. We hope you will join us once again.
We remain committed to providing you with the unflinching, fact-based journalism everyone deserves.
Thank you again for your support along the way. We’re truly grateful for readers like you! Your initial support helped get us here and bolstered our newsroom, which kept us strong during uncertain times. Now as we continue, we need your help more than ever. We hope you will join us once again.
Already a member? Log in to hide these messages.
“I don’t know at what point does he actually make it clear? ‘No, I’m not running and it’s one of these guys, or it’s that guy,’” he said.
The attention dramatically shifts away from a president at the point they are a lame duck and Trump “certainly” wouldn’t be in the spotlight as he likes to be, said Karl, adding, “So I don’t know how he voluntarily passes the baton.”