Much has been made of Donald Trump’s mythical shortlist for VP candidates to run alongside him in 2024. Sure, there are outliers, but the most surprising part of his search is that he’s looking less at the list of people running against him for the nomination — the usual source for a running mate — and more toward someone completely new.

Especially if it’s an attractive woman.

We all remember how well that worked out for Senator John McCain when he ran against Obama. But that hasn’t stopped Trump. He’s apparently considered Lauren Boebert, Marjorie Taylor Greene, and Kristi Noem.

Each of those women has had something spectacularly bad come out in the news about them recently, though. Lauren Boebert has been plagued by the accounts of her removal from a theater for numerous reasons. Greene looked like an idiot when the impeachment of Joe Biden she’s been championing since the day he took office finally came to an inquiry with no evidence.

And the latest, Kristi Noem, was just discovered to have been carrying on a years-long affair with noted jerk and Trump associate Cory Lewandowski, whose name I honestly thought I might never have to type again at one point.

Trip up Trump, though? Not by a long shot. In fact, he might respect her more. This is the guy, you’ll remember, who said he wasn’t worried about the prospect of Melania leaving him, since he could always get another wife.

On his recent appearance on Meet The Press, incoming moderator Kristin Welker asked him about a female running mate, and he expressed a fondness for the idea. In fact, specifically talking about Kristi Noem, he said that she’d given him a “full-throated endorsement” that was “beautiful.”

For her part, Noem hasn’t been shy about angling for the job:

Kristi Noem makes her pitch to be Trump’s running mate: “I would in a heartbeat. Trump needs a strong partner. He’s gonna need somebody who knows what it’s like to run a business .. also to have a wife, mom, and grandmother isn’t bad either.” pic.twitter.com/pmpGszWOhc

— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) September 8, 2023

I suppose of all the people on the “shortlist” from Trump, Noem’s public scandal probably offends him the least. And we all know his voters will just pull the lever for whoever he tells them to vote for.

You can watch Trump talk about the full-throated endorsement HERE.