Donald Trump on Wednesday ruled out picking former rival Rick Perry as his running mate but said there could still be a role for the former Texas governor in a Trump administration.
“I’d like to get him involved in some capacity at a high level,” the presumptive Republican presidential nominee said in an interview with Bloomberg Politics. “Because I think he’s very good. I think he’s very very good. He’s also very good on the border.”
Perry, who denounced Trump last summer as a “cancer on conservatism” during his second ill-fated run for president, endorsed the real estate mogul earlier this year after U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas dropped out of the race. Since then, Perry has made no secret of his openness to serve in a Trump administration, either as vice president or in another role.
One area where Perry believes he can be helpful is on veterans’ issues. In a recent appearance on Fox News, Perry said the topic came up when he spoke with Trump at the National Rifle Association convention last month in Louisville, Kentucky.
“He knows that’s where my passion is,” Perry said. “He knows that’s what I care about, and he also knows that I’ve got a lot of experience having been the commander-in-chief of the Texas Guard and our forces that we deployed multiple times into theaters. He knows my passion, he knows my interests and he knows my expertise, and I’m more than happy to give it to him.”
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