Report: Trump To Reveal VP Pick Friday

Presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump is expected to announce his vice-presidential running mate at a public event on July 15.

Sources told NBC News that Trump’s shortlist of VP candidates is down to three names: Republican Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, Republican Gov. Mike Pence of Indiana, and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

Trump’s list could prove to be problematic. Gingrich is 73 years old and hasn’t held public office since 1999. And Christie, once considered a potential star in the GOP, failed to make a mark during the Republican primary and has often been described as a “bully,” most recently by a local New Jersey politician who was responding to the governor’s decision to shut down road and train projects after state legislators failed to approve a 23-cent gas tax, reported the Hoboken Patch.

Pence, meanwhile, has bonafide conservative credentials and a long record in Washington as a congressman, as well as executive experience in his role as governor of Indiana. But in a political age where appeal to women and non-white people is imperative, Pence doesn’t add much diversity to the Trump ticket.

Former Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota told The New York Times that Trump’s list is notable because the names are not exactly the most electable politicians in the GOP.

“In their private moments, candidates acknowledge that the pick has a lot to do with who they think could help them win,” said Pawlenty, who was considered to be a Republican vice-presidential contender in 2008 and 2012. “That’s the traditional analysis, but I’m not sure that will apply in the nontraditional Trump campaign.”

NBC News reported that Trump will likely make the VP announcement at a public rally, and the New York Post reported that he may do his first sit-down interview with his new VP on the TV program “60 Minutes.”

“I’m torn,” Trump told the New York Post when asked if he would wait until the start of the Republican convention to announce his decision. “The reason I’m torn is that I’m being offered massive television shows — the biggest — to announce it on those shows … like ‘60 Minutes,’ and they want to tape it on Friday and broadcast it on … the Sunday before [the convention] — and my question is, will I do it on ‘60 Minutes’? Even though by that time, you’ll know.”

Sources: NBC News, Hoboken Patch, The New York Times, New York Post / Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore/Flickr