Trump reportedly considered choosing Ivanka as his running mate in 2016


President Trump was reportedly eyeing a potential Trump-Trump ticket in 2016.
According to an upcoming book by former Trump deputy campaign manager Rick Gates, Trump suggested naming his daughter Ivanka Trump as his running mate in 2016, The Washington Post and Bloomberg report.
"I think it should be Ivanka," Trump reportedly said. "What about Ivanka as my VP?"
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Gates writes that "we all knew Trump well enough to keep our mouths shut and not laugh" at the idea, per Bloomberg, as Trump went on to say that his daughter is "bright, she's smart, she's beautiful, and the people would love her!"
In fact, according to Bloomberg, the book describes how Trump brought up this idea numerous times over the following weeks, and Gates said it became clear to advisers "just how serious he was about putting his politically inexperienced daughter just a heartbeat from the presidency." The campaign reportedly conducted polling on the potential pick, and Gates writes that by July 2016, the idea "started to catch some momentum." Ultimately, though, Ivanka Trump herself shot it down, according to Gates.
"She went to her father and said, 'No, Dad. It's not a good idea,'" Gates writes, per Bloomberg. "And he capitulated."
Other alternative running mates who reportedly were considered include former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, but Gates writes that Trump "had already told us, privately, that he thought 'there was something wrong and off' with Newt." While Ivanka would ultimately become an adviser to her father in the White House, the campaign in the end went with then-Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as the 2016 running mate, despite the fact that, according to Gates, Trump had previously referred to Pence as a "loser."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.
-
Book reviews: 'America, América: A New History of the New World' and 'Sister, Sinner: The Miraculous Life and Mysterious Disappearance of Aimee Semple McPherson'
Feature A historian tells a new story of the Americas and the forgotten story of a pioneering preacher
-
Another messaging app used by the White House is in hot water
The Explainer TeleMessage was seen being used by former National Security Adviser Mike Waltz
-
AI hallucinations are getting worse
In the Spotlight And no one knows why it is happening
-
Israel approves plan to take over Gaza indefinitely
speed read Benjamin Netanyahu says the country is 'on the eve of a forceful entry'
-
Putin talks nukes as Kyiv slated for US air defenses
speed read 'I hope they will not be required,' Putin said of nuclear weapons on Russian state TV
-
US, Ukraine sign joint minerals deal
speed read The Trump administration signed a deal with Ukraine giving the US access to its mineral wealth
-
What happens if tensions between India and Pakistan boil over?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION As the two nuclear-armed neighbors rattle their sabers in the wake of a terrorist attack on the contested Kashmir region, experts worry that the worst might be yet to come
-
Israel launches air strike on Beirut suburbs
Speed Read The attack targeting Hezbollah was Israel's third on the Lebanese capital since November's ceasefire
-
Dozens dead in Kashmir as terrorists target tourists
Speed Read Visitors were taking pictures and riding ponies in a popular mountain town when assailants open fired, killing at least 26
-
Israel blames 'failures' for killing of medics
speed read 14 Gaza medics and 1 U.N. employee were killed by IDF special forces
-
Why Russia removed the Taliban's terrorist designation
The Explainer Russia had designated the Taliban as a terrorist group over 20 years ago