Sen. Tim Scott became the second former campaign rival to join Donald Trump on stage in New Hampshire this week, sparking a new wave of speculation that the former president will audition his potential running mate.
The South Carolina senator received a hero's welcome in front of hundreds of Trump supporters in Concord as he delivered his endorsement.
“We need a president who sees Americans as one American family. “We need…” Scott said, prompting the audience to roar “Donald Trump.”
“And that’s why I came to the very warm state of New Hampshire to support the next president of the United States, President Donald Trump.”
Sen. Tim Scott endorsed Donald Trump on Friday after touting his trip to New Hampshire with a cheeky video in front of the former president's private jet
Trump called on his supporters to achieve a good result in the primaries on Tuesday. “This could be the end.” “A big vote could end it,” he said. “Then we could concentrate on Biden and his thugs”
His appearance was spiced up by a cheeky video filmed outside the former president's private jet.
It's a familiar move for a real estate mogul who catapulted his fame to stratospheric heights with “The Apprentice.” He has often used the campaign period to approach potential vice presidents or senior officials, gauging audience reaction.
Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley have also courted Scott's support, but Trump's capture of the senator comes as his top advisers hope they will kill his two rivals and now focus his fire solely on President Joe Biden.
New Hampshire holds its first statewide primary on Tuesday. Haley, in particular, could have difficulty continuing her campaign if she finishes behind the former president by a wide margin.
“This could be the end.” “A big vote could be the end,” Trump said as he urged his fans to go to the polls on Tuesday. “Then we could focus on Biden and his thugs.”
On Tuesday, Trump took the stage alongside biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, a day after he dropped out of the race. That led to headlines that the 38-year-old could be a potential vice president.
And on Friday, Trump was introduced by New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, another rising star tipped as a future vice president.
The audience was thrilled by the big reveal, which Scott previously announced in a video outside Trump's private jet.
Sharon Rusanski, 46, six hours in temperatures that dropped to 18°F by the time the doors opened. She said the sense of theater is what makes Trump so special.
“I think that’s what makes him entertaining,” she said. “But I also think that politics doesn't always have to be so serious. “It can be fun.”
She added that Scott would make a great vice president.
“I don’t know if Vivek is ready,” she said. “Perhaps press secretary?
“Elise would be great too because she’s a woman and it’s always great to get a different perspective.”
Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik is a rising star in the party and introduced Trump at his rally at the Concord, New Hampshire, Convention Center on Friday evening
People lined up from midday for a speech that didn't begin until after 8:30 p.m., braving New Hampshire's bitterly cold temperatures to see Trump up close
Stefanik spoke to reporters before the rally and shrugged off speculation about the vice president
The audience loved Stefanik's introduction. She rose to public prominence late last year when she questioned the presidents of two elite universities about their policies against promoting genocide.
“Two down, one left,” she told “whoops,” as she pointed out that two of the speechless presidents resigned after being humiliated by their questioning.
But Scott was the big prize for Trump and another statement of intent as he tries to quickly close the nomination.
A source previously laid out Scott's thoughts.
“The key point was that he has been talking to Trump for some time and they have a very good relationship,” said a source familiar with their conversations.
“We have to focus on beating Joe Biden.”
It's a bitter blow for Haley, whose political base is also South Carolina and whom Scott appointed to the Senate as governor in 2012.
She needs a huge boost if she wants to pull off an upset in New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary on Tuesday.
A spokeswoman for her campaign downplayed the twist.
“It’s interesting that Trump aligned himself with all the Washington insiders when he claimed he wanted to drain the swamp,” Olivia Perez-Cubas told the Associated Press.
“But the guys are going to do what the guys are going to do.”
She and DeSantis, who largely skipped the first-in-the-nation primary in the northeastern part of the state, are both understood to have spoken to Scott to try to win his support.
The senator has a powerful fundraising machine and could help the former frontrunner make further progress on Biden's black support.
Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., speaks to President Donald Trump during a 2020 campaign event
Both Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis have asked for Scott's support. They're struggling to slow the Trump juggernaut, and Haley, in particular, needs a strong result on Monday
Scott, the only black Republican in the Senate, carried a message of optimism and unity. This made him stand out in a field that painted a bleak picture of America under Biden.
His personal story of growing up poor gave him the broad appeal that made him a candidate.
But he never really gained traction in the polls, despite having a huge financial war chest, and struggled to make an impact in the first three Republican debates.
On Tuesday, Trump was joined on stage by tech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who bowed out less than 24 hours earlier after a disappointing fourth-place finish in Iowa.
“It’s an honor to have his support,” Trump said. “He will work with us and he will work with us for a long time.”
Those comments added to speculation that the 38-year-old could join the Trump ticket.