Put aside all the funny memes of Sen. Josh Hawley running. Could it be that the soon-to-be senior senator from Missouri is vying to be Donald Trump’s vice presidential running mate? The current list of potential vice presidential picks swirling around does not seem to include Hawley, but that doesn’t necessarily mean Hawley isn’t working to make it on the shortlist. It is no secret that Hawley has higher aspirations for 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Perhaps he thinks getting in through the back door of the West Wing is easier than the front.
Hawley began some cryptic messaging shortly after it was projected that Democratic incumbent Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada beat her Republican challenger, Adam Laxalt in the midterm elections, and it was clear that Democrats were going to maintain control of the U.S. Senate. Hawley tweeted “The old party is dead. Time to bury it. Build something new.”
Hawley’s press office declined my request for an interview or statement about what, exactly, Hawley meant by that tweet. Since I never got any answers, I will speculate widely.
