Sen. Tim Scott has given the strongest indication yet he’s a top contender to be former President Donald Trump’s running mate, suggesting Wednesday he’ll be part of a potential vice presidential debate to be held this summer.
“I hear there’s a debate in July,” Scott (R-SC) told Newsmax host Eric Bolling. “If you’re the guy moderating, maybe I’ll be talking to you. We’ll see what happens.”
Bolling then asked Scott point-blank if he will be Trump’s No. 2.
“We’ll see, we’ll see,” a laughing Scott replied.
Trump and President Biden have agreed to two head-to-head debates, one on June 27 and another on Sept. 10. Biden’s campaign has also proposed having a VP debate in July, but an agreement on the timing has not been announced.
Scott has long been reported as a top contender in the 45th president’s veepstakes, with one source telling The Post last month the senator was doing “everything he can to build his relationship with Donald Trump in an attempt to get picked as VP.”
Trump, 77, has said he will reveal his choice closer to the Republican National Convention, slated to be held July 15-18 in Milwaukee, and has spoken positively about several possible candidates.
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, who is also reported to be in the running, told The Post on Saturday that Trump had recently claimed to a gathering of his supporters at Mar-a-Lago that there are 50 candidates in play.
But Scott — a former 2024 presidential contender who dropped out of the race in November — has repeatedly been singled out for special praise by Trump.
“He’s a much better representative for me than he is a representative for himself,” Trump said of Scott at a campaign rally in South Carolina earlier this year. “And it’s true. And that’s a great compliment. And you know why? Because he’s a high-quality person. He doesn’t like talking about himself.”
Scott is widely considered to fit the bill of what sources close to the Trump campaign consider an ideal running mate for the former president; namely, someone who is loyal to the GOP standard-bearer, but does not upstage him.
Scott has been one of Trump’s fiercest supporters since endorsing him right before the Jan. 23 New Hampshire primary, stumping for him on the trail and on the airwaves.
The South Carolinian has also started a weekly video series, “America’s Starting Five,” joining the other four black Republicans in Congress to pitch the GOP message to African-American voters ahead of the Nov. 5 election.
The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to an inquiry from The Post.