President Donald Trump has pitted two of his cabinet members against each other in the battle over who will succeed him and run for president in 2028, and so far, there is a clear loser in this fight, an analyst revealed on Thursday.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has appeared to win Trump over so far, as Vice President JD Vance has lost favor after failed negotiations with Iran, wrote Jonathan V. Last, editor at The Bulwark.
And Last argued that it comes down to what Harry Potter character Albus Dumbledore says: “People find it far easier to forgive others for being wrong than being right.”
"Point is that Rubio has been wrong about the Iran war from the jump. And that’s why Trump has begun elevating him above JD Vance in the Favorite Adopted Son sweepstakes," Last wrote.
"It’s clear that Trump is displeased with JD Vance," Last explained. "Early on, when Trump thought he was winning in Iran, there were leaks about Vance not being on board with the war. Daddy Trump sent Vance to negotiate with the Iranians when they clearly had all the cards, setting him up for failure—and at the same time took Rubio with him on vacation to fight night. There was a huge dump of leaks designed to show that Trump doesn’t think Vance has the juice."
Rubio didn't play the same game as Vance. And Rubio has benefited.
"Vance’s mistake was trying to influence the party line, rather than adapting to whatever the Leader said the party line happened to be. Any of Stalin’s henchmen could have told him that was a mistake," Last wrote.
"The worse Iran gets, the worse it will be for Vance," Last added. "Trump will become even more resentful—even if Vance never says, told you so. Trump will remember that Vance was the one who told him not to do it."