Sen. Bob Corker Opts Out of Being Considered for Donald Trump’s Vice President
The Tennessee senator appeared with Trump at a campaign rally Tuesday.
— -- Sen. Bob Corker is removing himself from the pool of potential vice president picks for presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump, according to Corker’s office.
Corker, R-Tenn., met privately with Trump for the first time in May at Trump Tower. The senator also met with Trump’s family before the candidate’s campaign rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, Tuesday night, where Corker appeared onstage to introduce Trump.
“I had the incredible privilege today to spend time with this man, to spend time with his family and to spend time with those who know him so well,” Corker said. “I figured out the reason that you love him so much. The reason you love him so much is because he loves you. He loves you, and he wants the best for you.”
As the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and a two-term senator, Corker seemed a promising potential Trump running mate.
However, Corker has been critical of Trump’s rhetoric, saying he does not condone the candidate’s comments on Judge Gonzalo Curiel’s Mexican heritage or Trump’s foreign policy proposals, including one to temporarily bar foreign Muslims from entering the U.S.
Corker, who appeared on ABC News’ “This Week” a month ago, said the likely Republican presidential nominee would have to adjust his tone as he moves toward the 2016 GOP convention unopposed.
“They’ve moved beyond the primary process this week to move to the World Series of this election,” Corker, 63, told George Stephanopoulos. “I think that he’s going to have to change. I’m not talking about him necessarily changing his views, but I think that he’s moving into a different phase, he’s talking to the right people.”