10
Loading video...
By Lars Hanson
Associate News Editor
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
President Donald Trump is keeping his options open on 2028.
In his first sit-down interview since Democrats won control of the House and Senate, Trump declined to commit to endorsing the next Republican presidential nominee. He named only one potential successor and suggested he might be better off staying out of the race entirely.
"Probably, not necessarily," Trump told CBS' 60 Minutes correspondent Ross Douthat when asked whether he would endorse a candidate. The interview was taped Friday at the White House and aired Sunday night.
Read More on News
It was an answer that held a yes and a no all at once. For a decade, the road to the Republican nomination has run through one man’s approval. Days after that approval failed to carry several of his candidates through the midterms, he would not say whether he means to give it again.
That leaves 2028 hopefuls weighing whether his blessing is an asset in a primary but a liability in November, and Trump’s own musing Sunday that he may be "better off not getting involved" puts the question in the open. By declining to anoint anyone, he keeps the field guessing and himself at the center of a contest he cannot enter: the 22nd Amendment bars him from a third term.
...
What Trump Said About 2028
Douthat asked what Trump would weigh in deciding whether to endorse a potential candidate.
"I don’t know, we have a tremendous bench," Trump said. "I mean, I have so many people that I have great relationships with."
Asked who would be on that list besides the vice president, Trump answered with a first name: "Well, I think Marco’s great," referring to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Trump also said Rubio would likely stay in his current post. "I think so. I mean, he certainly loves it, and he’s doing great. He’s doing a fantastic job."
Then he declined to go further. "There are many others. And I’d rather not mention their names," Trump said. "There’s some senators that are excellent. I know them all. I like them a lot."
Whether Trump decides to endorse a Republican candidate appeared up in the air, however.
"So I may or may not get involved. I don’t know. Maybe I’m better off not getting involved," he told Douthat. "I think it would play a big role if I did, because my endorsement capacity has been very strong. People I endorse get nominations."
Two of Trump’s Senate picks won their primaries this year, then lost on Tuesday.
In Texas, Trump endorsed Attorney General Ken Paxton over incumbent Senator John Cornyn. Paxton lost to Democrat James Talarico, the first Democrat to win a Texas Senate race since 1988.
In South Carolina, Trump-backed Senator Darline Graham, appointed after the death of her brother, Senator Lindsey Graham, in July, lost to Democrat Annie Andrews. Andrews is the first Democrat South Carolina has elected to the Senate since 1998.
Trump told Douthat he endorsed Graham "in honor of" her late brother. On Texas, he argued that "Cornyn would have lost also."
What About JD Vance?
Trump never mentioned Vice President JD Vance by name. The vice president entered the conversation only through Douthat’s question, and Trump neither ruled him in nor out.
The omission comes four days after Vance publicly blamed the midterm losses on the U.S. war with Iran. "The reason we lost is the war," he wrote in a post on X the morning after the election. "The president himself said so last night."
Citing a pollster, Vance wrote that many 2024 Trump voters had crossed over to Democrats. Asked what would bring them back, those voters gave four top answers:
- End the war
- Focus on cost of living/inflation
- Put America First
- Change our relationship to Israel
Trump told Douthat that Vance asked him first, and that he replied, "Write what you feel."
He said he didn’t disagree with Vance’s analysis except on one point Vance left out: whether, knowing the cost, he would launch the war again. "My answer is an emphatic yes," Trump said, "because you can’t let Iran have a nuclear weapon."
What Polls, Prediction Markets Say
Trump would not name the "many others," but polling sketches the field. The RealClearPolling average of national Republican primary polls, all taken before Tuesday’s election, puts Vance at 38 percent, Rubio at 26 percent, and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis at 8 percent.
The senators Trump may have alluded to barely register so far: Texas Senator Ted Cruz sits at about 3 percent.
Traders have marked Vance down since Tuesday but still make him the favorite. As of Sunday evening, Polymarket gave him a 32 percent chance of winning the nomination, followed by Rubio at 21 percent and DeSantis at about 15 percent. That is a steep slide for Vance: when Polymarket launched its 2028 market in July 2025, he was priced at 56 percent.
Kalshi showed the same order: Vance 34 percent, Rubio 21 percent, DeSantis 17 percent. DeSantis has been the week’s biggest mover, gaining about 13 points on Kalshi as Vance slipped. Kalshi traders also give Rubio a 55 percent chance of leaving the administration this year, effectively a bet against Trump’s prediction that he will stay.
What Happens Next
No Republican has formally entered the 2028 race. Vance has said he would decide on a run after the midterms, and that deadline has arrived. Rubio has said he would defer to Vance if the vice president runs.
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines