Representative Elise Stefanik (R-NY) is determined to be Donald Trump's Vice President and is doing everything she can to demonstrate her loyalty.
During an interview with CNN on Thursday, Stefanik told Kaitlan Collins that she “would not have done what Mike Pence did,” adding, “I don’t think that was the right approach."
This comment was in reference to Trump's former Vice President Mike Pence, who certified the 2020 election results against Trump's wishes.
Trump wanted Pence to reject certification because of allegations of voter fraud and other irregularities. Pence wasn't willing to do that and as a result much of the momentum for Trump to litigate the 2020 presidential election was lost.
Trump is searching for absolute loyalty in his next Vice President and Stefanik's statement that she would have handled January 6th, 2021, differently is a calculated move to demonstrate that she's Trump's best option.
Pence was fanatically loyal to Trump up until the moment when his loyalty mattered the most.
Trump believed in his hunch that the election had been compromised by Democrats in key swing states. However, if Pence certified the election results, there likely would have been no going back.
Stefanik told Collins that, "There was unconstitutional overreach in states like Pennsylvania. It’s very important that we continue to stand up for the Constitution and have legal and secure elections, which we did not have in 2020."
That statement sends a clear message to Trump that if he picks Stefanik, he will have absolute loyalty from her.
Another Republican vying for Trump's VP position is Senator J.D. Vance (R-OH), who took notes on what Stefanik was doing to woo Trump and decided to do the same thing.
During an interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos, Vance stated that "If I had been vice president, I would have told the states, like Pennsylvania, Georgia, and so many others, that we needed to have multiple slates of electors, and I think the US Congress should have fought over it from there."
The Republican who wants to be Trump's right-hand man must meet this standard if they want to even be considered for the job. Trump's last term was undermined by disloyal aides and officials and he has made it clear he won't be making the same mistakes twice.
While Stefanik has positioned herself as the front runner to be Trump's Vice President, her history going back to Trump's first term raises questions about if she should really be trusted.
Back during Trump's first term, Stefanik touted herself as an independent voice who criticized Trump regularly for his rhetoric. She also attacked Trump's radical policies that signficiantly shook up the status quo in Washington D.C.
In Trump's first term, Stefanik was a constant critic. Now that Trump is the leader of the Republican Party who offers a path to prominence, Stefanik suddenly no longer cares about his rhetoric. All this points to the possibility that she may not be the one for Trump in 2024.
