Donald Trump provided the American people with a preview of what “make America great” really means when he announced his short list for his first Supreme Court nominee. There were seventeen judges – all were white, 3 were female. There was not an Asian, Latino or African American candidate to be found. Clearly, “making America great” to Donald Trump means making America (more) white. And now, he has provided us another preview of the nightmare that would be the Trump presidency by revealing a couple of potential Vice Presidents – Chris Christie and Newt Gingrich.

The Constitution of the United States is quite clear on the point – the Vice President succeeds the President if the President is unable to serve. Yet, over the past half century, Republicans have shown a combination of ignorance or disregard for the importance of the office of the Vice President given their choices for the person who would be a “heartbeat away from the presidency”. Consider some of the choices that have been made and imagine the unimaginable – if one of these Republican Vice Presidential candidates had become President of the United States:
• Spiro Agnew – Former governor of Maryland – Indicted and convicted of bribery while serving as governor.
• Dan Quayle – United States Senator from Indiana famous for his malapropisms and his incredible inability to even spell the word “potato” correctly
• Dick Cheney – A neocon hawk who famously dodged the draft five times. Became very wealthy as the CEO of Halliburton, a charter member of the military industrial complex.
• Sarah Palin – Former governor of Alaska whose foreign policy credentials included her claim that she could see Russia from her kitchen window. Perhaps the most unqualified person ever nominated for vice president in the modern era.

While Donald Trump is not known as a traditionalist, he is hewing to the G.O.P. tradition of dangerous and/or preposterous vice presidential nominees by seemingly giving serious consideration to Newt Gingrich and Chris Christie. Newt Gingrich was Speaker of the House. And Newt Gingrich left that office in disgrace, cast out by members of his own party. Since that career debacle, he has managed to earn a living by offering his opinions, supported by a gossamer foundation of facts and truth, and getting paid for it.

Newt Gingrich proclaimed his adoration of “Anglo-Saxon values” during the Trump inspired “birther” disgrace that targeted President Obama. A true dog whistler, his personal skeleton closet is virtually overflowing and his Vice Presidential candidacy would be an early Christmas gift to Gawker, TMZ, the National Enquirer and every other gossip monger. The vision of a Gingrich presidency could actually be more nightmarish than a Trump presidency.

Trump’s possible choice of Chris Christie would be the consummate narcissistic act on his part. Chris Christie was Trump in politics before Trump got into politics. Christie has been a vulgar bully who seemingly abhors any facts that do not crown him with glory.

Some of those facts include the collapse of Atlantic City while he has been governor (another point of commonality with Trump’s failures in that benighted city, cursed by the presence of both Trump and Christie), his horrific battles with the teachers of the Garden State and his as yet to be resolved involvement in the closing down of the George Washington Bridge seemingly for political revenge. That last item, by the way, has already cost New Jersey taxpayers over $10 million in legal fees, all to protect Chris Christie’s enormous posterior.

Perhaps Donald Trump sees himself when he looks at Chris Christie. Perhaps he believes that Newt Gingrich would actually “make America great again” in the Anglo Saxon tradition that countenanced slavery and genocide.

Or, perhaps Donald Trump is so convinced of his immortality he doesn’t really need a Vice President – he just needs someone to reflect his self-proclaimed glory.