WSJ: Trump is completely enamored with Doug Burgum

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Trump’s embrace of Burgum reveals what is really important to the VP search, according to people close to the former president: whether Trump likes the person, regardless of what they bring to the ticket. Trump likes that Burgum is rich, loyal and good looking, according to people close with the presumptive GOP nominee.

“He’s a rich guy with rich friends,” said one Republican close to both the Trump campaign and Burgum’s office. “That goes a long way with Trump. It also goes a long way with a campaign that’s shorter on cash than the other team,” referring to President Biden’s fundraising prowess.

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For a race polling as close as the 2024 presidential election, some aides tell Trump it is best to pick a running mate who might give him a bump in swing states, or with demographic groups with which he is falling short—in particular, women and Black voters.

Burgum, a wealthy white governor from a deeply red state Trump is virtually assured to win, doesn’t check those boxes.

But Trump is impressed with Burgum’s business acumen, according to people familiar with his thinking. Following Burgum’s endorsement of Trump in January, Trump described him as: “the most solid guy. There’s no controversy whatsoever.”

Those familiar with Trump’s thinking said that if Trump were to win in November, he likely would see Burgum as a better fit for a cabinet position—such as energy, commerce or agriculture secretary—given his experience in business and in running a state where oil-and-gas drilling and production, petroleum refining and corn, wheat and soybean production are the dominant industries.

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For now, a Trump aide said the former president likes that Burgum brings in donors—and supporters in general—who don’t normally get active in politics. The aide declined to be specific.

He also likes Burgum’s appearance, according to several aides, in keeping with Trump’s tendency to defer to his “Central Casting” instincts. Burgum is tall and fit with a head full of wavy salt-and-pepper hair.

Burgum’s wife, Kathryn, has a compelling story about overcoming struggles with alcoholism, a disease that consumed Trump’s older brother, Fred Trump Jr., who died in 1981. It is something the former president has found endearing about North Dakota’s first couple, according to people familiar with their dynamic.

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Burgum’s company Great Plains Software Inc., which he mortgaged inherited farmland in 1983 to invest in, was bought by Microsoft in 2000 for about $1.1 billion in stock. Burgum became a Microsoft senior vice president with the acquisition. In 2016, he was elected governor of North Dakota, making him one of the wealthiest governors in the U.S.

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Unlike former Vice President Mike Pence, Burgum doesn’t have strong ties to the evangelical community. But his record overlaps with Trump’s interests on energy and border security, those close to both men said.

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