President Trump reportedly likes to go around asking aides about who his successor should be: J. D. Vance or Marco Rubio. If Trump were to ask his own voters the same question, he would, at least based on my recent experience, come away with a pretty clear answer. I run weekly focus groups, and the moderators regularly ask Trump voters whom they would like to see inherit the party in 2028 and beyond. More and more, what we're hearing in response is a strange new respect for Rubio. Although Vance might seem like a more natural MAGA heir, many Trump voters see Rubio as a stabilizing force who comes off a lot better than many of his peers inside the administration, including the vice president. 'Marco Rubio, I think, is an amazing dude,' said Ken, a Biden 2020/Trump 2024 voter from Georgia. 'If anybody is left that we can see on the TV or C-SPAN that's just genuine,' he said, 'it's Marco Rubio.' Ken called Rubio 'a family man and still a stand-up politician,' and said, 'He also is...
learn more
