In the early hours of Feb. 28, President Donald Trump and his administration joined Israel in launching a wave of strikes on Iran that would reverberate across the Middle East. That night, he was schmoozing at Mar-a-Lago with some of his top administration officials and political donors, with a pressing question: Marco or JD?
With a group of roughly 25 GOP donors, including New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and billionaireGeorgia gubernatorial candidate Rick Jackson, Trump asked the room whom they would prefer he support for president in 2028.
Attendees overwhelmingly indicated Secretary of State Marco Rubio through their cheering, according to two people who were at the event.
“It was almost unanimous for Marco,” said a person in attendance, who, like others in this article, was granted anonymity to speak candidly.
“Yeah, that’s right,” said the second attendee about the informal Trump poll. “It was clear, at least that night.”
Another person in the room characterized the response as more “evenly split” between Rubio and Vance.
That small gathering in Florida — Rubio’s home state — doesn’t necessarily mean that Rubio is the new favorite over Vice President JD Vance for 2028.
“The Mar-a-Lago donor crew are not JD people,” a former Trump administration official said. “He did not get picked [to be vice president] because of the Mar-a-Lago crowd. If you remember, that crowd was lobbying the president to pick Marco.”
“So, I’d say stuff like that is a bit gamed,” the former official added. “If there were a poll taken tomorrow, I’d bet JD is still up by 40 [points], or whatever it is.”
It’s not the first time Trump has quizzed those in his orbit about how he should engage in the forthcoming political fight to replace him as the Republican standard-bearer. But it’s another instance of the dynamic and an indication that the president plans to play a big role — and is taking an early interest — in the future of the party.
Source: Drudge Report
