Trump’s Private Pick for 2028, His Defense Panic and a Website Overhaul Point to a White House Running Hot
Donald Trump has privately told donors that Vice President JD Vance is the man he wants to back for the Republican ticket in 2028, even
Donald Trump has privately told donors that Vice President JD Vance is the man he wants to back for the Republican ticket in 2028, even as he keeps teasing Marco Rubio in public. The leak lands in a week when the 80-year-old president has also been shown raging over low U.S. weapons stockpiles and a separate set of former DOGE aides has been quietly rebuilding federal websites with sensitive functions.
A private choice, a public game
For months, Trump had kept Vance and Rubio both in play, suggesting either could lead the party’s next presidential ticket. In a private Oval Office conversation with donors about two weeks ago, though, he appeared to narrow the field.
“At the end of the day, we need to elect JD,” Trump said, according to two sources who spoke to The Washington Post. That comment runs against his public posture, where he has floated a “perfect” 2028 Republican ticket with one man at the top and the other as the running mate.
The remark matters because Trump has long acted as the central power broker in the GOP. Vance had widely been seen as the MAGA heir apparent, but Trump’s habit of playing rivals against each other has kept the succession question fluid. Now the private signal points in one direction. Quietly, but clearly.
White House fury spills into defense
The leak about 2028 comes as Trump faces a separate crisis inside his own government. NBC News reported that he called Deputy Defense Secretary Stephen Feinberg in anger after concluding that U.S. weapons stockpiles were running low.
Sources said the call triggered an emergency meeting with senior military and acquisition officials. Trump reportedly suggested Feinberg could be fired. The Defense Department has been trying to refill depleted stockpiles after aid to Ukraine, strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen, last year’s 12-day war, and the ongoing confrontation with Iran since February.
The episode adds to signs of strain in the administration’s war footing. One official told NBC that the White House had scored tactical wins but was drifting toward a strategic defeat without clear guidance on where the conflict goes next. Inside the building, the pressure is showing.
Old government, new trackers
At the same time, a separate report from The Guardian said former DOGE employees are still involved in rebuilding federal websites under the National Design Studio, an agency created by executive order last August. The group runs sites tied to passport applications, prescription drugs, children’s savings accounts and voter registration.
Until The Guardian asked questions, all four sites used visitor-tracking software designed to avoid standard privacy tools, the report said. The sites also lacked the public privacy filings required under federal law, and the agency’s spending did not appear in the federal contract database.
The setup raises a simple question: who is watching the watchmen? In this case, the answer appears to be a mix of old Trump-world hands, new government branding and a digital trail that officials have yet to fully explain. The next test may come when privacy watchdogs or lawmakers start asking for the paperwork that still is not there.
