Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., declined on Thursday to say whether she is being vetted as a possible running mate for Donald Trump.
“I am a very unlikely candidate,” she told Politico when asked if she had submitted an extensive vetting packet that Trump’s campaign has sent to those on his vice presidential short list.
“I am a conservative from a red state. I am a very unlikely candidate,” repeated Blackburn, who has represented one of Tennessee’s most conservative congressional districts since 2002.
Earlier this year, the Tennessee Republican said in an interview with the Washington Times that “anybody would consider that offer” with regards to being Trump’s running mate.
“I’m not from a toss-up state or a purple state, but it is so nice when your colleagues and friends and people that you know say, ‘we think you would be worthy of consideration. That’s just nice to hear,” she said in March.
Conservative commentator S.E. Cupp suggested Blackburn would be a “smart pick” for the bottom of the GOP ticket in a column on Thursday.
“She’s experienced and politically sophisticated, but still evokes an everyman appeal,” Cupp contended. “She can soften his ticket while still embracing strength and toughness, and she’s smart enough to spin his inevitable outbursts into plausible policy proposals.”
“It’s tough to see where she damages [Trump’s] chances, and could have an improbable opportunity to better them,” she added.
Blackburn joined 200 of her colleagues at the Capitol Hill Club on Thursday for a closed-door meeting with Trump.
“He is going to be out there working hard until the end and he’s putting a lot of energy [into] issues of national security, jobs and economics,” she said of the candidate after the meeting had concluded.
