J.D. Vance says no ‘conflict’ with possible White House rival Rubio

U.S. Vice-President J.D. Vance said on Tuesday (February 17, 2026) there was “no conflict” between him and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who some speculate will be a front-runner for President in the 2028 elections.

“I think it’s so interesting the media wants to create this conflict where there just isn’t any conflict,” Mr. Vance said in an interview with conservative broadcaster Fox News.

Though Donald Trump is only a year into his term as President, White House campaigns are often launched far in advance of the polls — with potential candidates the subject of endless speculation ahead of declaring their intentions.

Mr. Trump was asked on Monday (February 16, 2026) about Mr. Rubio and Mr. Vance, saying, “I don’t have to worry” about who was going to replace him.

“I’ve got three years to go,” Mr. Trump said. “They’re both fantastic.”

Another time-honoured tradition in American politics is presidential hopefuls waving away speculation that they have the intention to eventually run for the country’s highest office.

Also read: Trump names Vance, Rubio as possible successors, rules out running for third term

“I asked the American people to give me this job that I have right now,” Mr. Vance said.

“Why don’t I do as good of a job as I can in this job? We’ll worry about the next job sometime in the future,” he added.

Mr. Rubio for his part, told magazine Vanity Fair in December that if Mr. Vance runs for President, “he’s going to be our nominee, and I’ll be one of the first people to support him.”

According to the Washington Examiner, another conservative outlet, Mr. Rubio and Mr. Vance will be among those filling in for White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt while she is on maternity leave later this year.

As the two heavy hitters of the Trump administration take turns addressing the press, political observers will be comparing the pair — even if Mr. Rubio and Mr. Vance claim they aren’t personally paying attention.