Trump Polls Supporters on JD Vance as 2028 Field Takes Shape

" The moment of levity masked deeper anxiety inside the White House over the still-distant 2028 presidential election and the Republican ticket. Trump has conducted several snap polls in recent weeks, a source familiar with the matter said. When he polled donors at Mar-a-Lago, they favored Marco Rubio.

But when Trump polled a group of law enforcement officers, whom the White House views as more representative of regular voters, they favored Vance. JD Vance remains the presumptive 2028 Republican nominee, White House sources said. Even so, Vice President Vance's top advisers huddled at a retreat to discuss political strategy at the start of the week.

Vance began discussing changes to his team back in January, including the addition of Cliff Sims as national security adviser and elevating Will Martin to deputy chief of staff, according to two sources familiar with the matter. Cliff Sims's new position as Vice President Vance's national security adviser was announced yesterday.

Sims has spent the past year as an external adviser to CIA director John Ratcliffe, according to multiple sources familiar with the arrangement.

He previously served as a White House press aide and later as communications director for the office of the director of national intelligence. Marco Rubio holds the title of Trump's national security adviser in addition to secretary of state. Rubio filled in for press secretary Karoline Leavitt to brief reporters on the Iran war last week.

The White House posted a clip of Rubio describing his vision for America on X. "President Trump has assembled an all-star team that has achieved unprecedented success in just over one year. Vice President Vance and Secretary Rubio are both invaluable members of the President’s team," Olivia Wales, a White House spokesperson, said in a statement.