The Republicans who want to be Trump's VP were once harsh critics with key policy differences - The Boston Globe

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

71% : " Burgum this year has become an enthusiastic champion of Trump and has leveraged his profile as a wealthy businessman and governor versed in energy policy to help the Republican secure millions in fundraising, especially from high-dollar donors.
52% : Stefanik announced days after the election that she was endorsing Trump for president in 2024 -- an announcement that came before Trump even said he was running.
50% : And as Trump has campaigned for the presidency a third time, Rubio has cheered his proposals.
50% : In an interview last July on NBC's "Meet the Press," Burgum, a businessman, was asked if he'd ever do business with Trump, and responded, "I don't think so."
50% : " He met with Trump at the White House after.
48% : But by the time Vance launched his campaign for the Senate in 2021, his views were closely aligned with Trump's.
44% : " Their relationship improved dramatically while Trump was in the White House.
41% : " Her loyalty to Trump stood out in 2022, as the former president's esteem within the party had deflated after he was absorbing blame for weaker-than-expected results in the midterm elections.
40% : When Trump was the party's nominee, she didn't say his name, only saying she would "support my party's nominee in the fall.
38% : Before that, the North Dakota governor had rejected the idea of partnering with Trump.
37% : " He told NPR that year, "I can't stomach Trump.
36% : He still supported Trump in the 2016 election, calling him the "lesser of two evils.
34% : Pence has pointedly refused to endorse Trump for another term in the White House.
23% : Like many other Republicans, Burgum was critical of Trump in 2016, when the "Access Hollywood" video was released in which Trump bragged about grabbing women by the genitalia without their consent.
22% : Earlier this month, when local reporters in her New York district asked her about her past criticisms of Trump, Stefanik repeatedly professed her support for the former president.
20% : " Vance said he didn't vote for Trump in 2016 and his former roommate shared images of a text message Vance sent him that year in which he called Trump "cynical" and said he could be "America's Hitler."
20% : " Trump publicly and privately pressured Pence to overturn Biden's 2020 election win during the congressional certification on Jan. 6, 2021, something Pence had no power to do.
20% : " Scott also criticized Trump after his comments equivocating about the 2017 white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, saying that his "moral authority" was "compromised.
19% : Vance has said he "was wrong" about Trump.
17% : He likewise criticized Trump for his attacks on a judge's Mexican heritage in 2016, calling it "racially toxic" and said the "Access Hollywood" comments were "indefensible" and "disgusting."
16% : Some of Florida Sen. Marco Rubio's harshest comments about Trump came as they sparred during the 2016 Republican race for president.
16% : " Burgum was one of more than a dozen Republicans who ran against Trump in the 2024 presidential primary, but he dropped out in December and endorsed Trump before voting began.
14% : " In 2016, the South Carolina senator initially backed Rubio in the presidential race and that same year excoriated Trump for his reluctance to condemn the Ku Klux Klan.
13% : Rubio also called Trump a "con artist," and "the most vulgar person to ever aspire to the presidency.
9% : When Republicans ousted former Rep. Liz Cheney from leadership over her criticism of Trump and his efforts to overturn the 2020 election, it was Stefanik they chose to take her place.
8% : Trump started calling him "Little Marco" and mocking him.

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