MILWAUKEE, Wis. — America First megastar and 2024 Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswami exclusively told Breitbart News he wants to talk with former President Donald Trump about how he can have the “biggest impact” on America, but said he would also consider accepting an appointment to the U.S. Senate if Trump candidate Vance wins in November.
As Ramaswami finished a brief news conference with a group of reporters outside the Pfizer Forum, he invited Breitbart News exclusively along for a ride in his golf cart through the streets of downtown Milwaukee as the second day of the Republican National Convention got underway.
During the interview, Breitbart News asked him if he would consider accepting an appointment to a seat that could be vacated by Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) if the Republican presidential candidate wins in November. The populist firebrand said he would consider it, but noted that because Vance was only nominated on Monday, he “doesn’t have a lot of time to think it through.” He also said he would like to talk with Trump about how he can best serve the country, emphasizing his desire to eradicate the administrative state.
“The truth is that the decision was only made yesterday and it was only just reported so I haven’t had time to really think about it. But if asked, of course I would consider it,” he said.
“I would love to talk to President Trump about how we can have the greatest impact on our country,” he added. “One of my passions — you know, my biggest passion and purpose — is to shut down the administrative state.”
Indeed, Ramaswami has long advocated for dismantling the administrative state, describing his vision for “eviscerating the administrative bureaucracy of the federal government” in an April 2023 interview with Breitbart News in Manchester, New Hampshire.
“What I care about is restoring our national identity and shutting down the deep state,” Ramaswami continued. “The first is a presidential job. The second is a team effort, and part of the team has to do it through the executive branch. We need to lay the groundwork in the Senate and Congress to pave the way legislatively for a president who can actually shut down the federal bureaucracy and get a lot of the bureaucrats out of the country.”
Ramaswami added that there needs to be a “mass deportation of millions of unelected federal officials in Washington, D.C.”
“I think this is the most important work that needs to be done for this country, and some of it will come through executive branch leadership, and some of it will probably come through legislative branch leadership,” he said.
Ramaswamy added that the only “downside” to populist Vance being Trump’s running mate is that it would create a “big vacuum” in the Senate if Vance and Trump win in November.
“That’s going to be important. When you think about governing without a supermajority — and there are different ideas even within the Assembly and the Senate about America First — I think that leaves a big vacuum to be filled,” he said.
“I would consider it out of a sense of duty to my country,” he said. “Until now, I have not harbored such a desire. If I had wanted to do that, I would have run for the Senate in the last few elections, but I didn’t for reasons. But at this moment, out of a sense of duty to my country, I would consider it.”
