Mark Cuban has made a habit of commenting on the 2016 race for president. A self-described independent, Cuban has offered praise and criticism for both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, but he’s open to being either candidate’s second-in-command.
And it turns out there are plenty of people out there who would probably be in favor of a Vice President Cuban.
Similar to Donald Trump, Cuban is a billionaire, political outsider, and outspoken reality TV star. However, when compared with Trump, public opinion is on Cuban’s side.
An independent survey of consumer attitudes conducted by BAV Consulting director Will Johnson and author Michael D’Antonio showed Cuban scoring higher than both Trump and Clinton in personality traits that determine likability. Their results also suggested Clinton and Cuban’s strengths complement each other nicely.
Cuban was determined to be more “charming,” “energetic,” and “trendy,” than Clinton, who received pretty low scores in those areas.
On the other hand, people identified Clinton as far more “helpful,” “socially responsible,” and “reliable.”
“All this suggests that across the board, Americans would value a Clinton/Cuban ticket extremely highly as they supplement each other’s strengths, shore up weaknesses, and impress voters with their well-rounded qualities,” Johnson and D’Antonio wrote in an op-ed for CNN.
There are some Democrats, and even some #NeverTrump Republicans, who are hoping Clinton will consider Cuban as her running mate, though Politico reports, “Democratic insiders close to the Clinton campaign dismiss Cuban with a laugh.”
“He would make voting for Clinton a lot more palatable for centrists and even some Republicans,” said conservative AEI scholar James Pethokoukis. “He could even peel off some Trump voters. He’s basically Trump without the crazy.”
Trump is planning to announce his VP selection on Friday. The top contender has been leaked to be Gov. Mike Pence.
For the record, Trump’s spokeswoman said that Cuban is not being considered for the job.
Clinton has a week longer to decide her VP pick before the Democratic National Convention, but she is reportedly considering Virginia Senator Tim Kaine, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, New Jersey Senator Cory Booker, Labor Secretary Tom Perez, and Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julian Castro.
