Last month at Mar-a-Lago, former President Donald Trump was dining on the outdoor patio, engaging in his regular habit of stopping by the tables of club members and talking about whatever issue was top of mind.
On this day, the GOP’s challenges on the issue of abortion became the focus when a member brought up the midterm elections and the hit Republicans took over reproductive rights.
According to a source who was present, the member told Trump to pick a running mate who isn’t too hard-line on the issue. Trump then began making the rounds polling his dinner guests about abortion and the veepstakes.
In particular, he asked the diners — who included his campaign aides and club members — what they thought of the vocal anti-abortion-rights views of Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina. Would they turn off voters?
According to two sources close to Trump, including the person at the dinner, Trump has been laser-focused on the abortion issue, especially when it comes to his vice presidential pick. He sees it as the one major advantage for Democrats and a vulnerability for Republicans.
“The president understands it as a treacherous issue — one that you can actually trip up and fall on your face with,” said the source, a person familiar with his thinking. The person added that Trump would most likely not risk picking “someone with a six-week ban in their discussions or someone without any commitment on the exceptions.”
