Why Mark Cuban refused Kamala Harris Vice President offer? Shark Tank star recalls being approached for Tim Waltz’s gig

Mark Cuban turned down an opportunity to join Kamala Harris’s presidential ticket last year, confirming that her campaign had reached out about a potential vice-presidential pairing. The billionaire entrepreneur made the admission on Thursday while chatting with Tim Miller on The Bulwark podcast.

Cuban admitted he declined the opportunity because he’s not built for second-in-command roles or for “shaking hands and kissing babies.”

Tim Miller pushed Mark Cuban for more clarity on why he hadn’t taken the vice-presidential vetting process further, despite his public backing of Kamala Harris.

“Why didn’t you consider, I mean, you ended up there campaigning with her, advising her.” Miller asked.

Cuban offered a candid explanation.

“The second part of that, my response was I’m not very good as the number two person. And so if the last thing we need is me telling Kamala, you know, the president that, no, that’s a dumb idea. Right. And I’m not real good at the shaking hands and kissing babies.”

In the end, Kamala Harris selected Minnesota Governor Tim Walz to join her ticket. He was chosen from a trio of finalists that also included Pennsylvania’s Josh Shapiro and Arizona Senator Mark Kelly.

Miller floated a hypothetical:

“If it was you instead of Tim Walz, who the hell knows? It feels maybe different.”

Cuban agreed, though not optimistically,

“I mean, obviously it would have been different. My personality is completely different than Tim’s. My experiences, my backgrounds are completely different. I think I’ve cut through the s**t more directly. I’m not a politician. And so it would have been different, but it would have been awful.”

He added with a laugh,

“She would have fired me within six days!”

Even so, Miller suggested that a Cuban VP pick might have improved the outcome.

“It would have been better than the present situation, you know?”

“Well, yes, that’s true, but, you know, I really thought she was going to win.” shared Cuban.

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Mark Cuban has a few ideas for fixing U.S. Healthcare:

Asked to name two things he’d change about the U.S. healthcare system if he had presidential power for just a day, Mark Cuban didn’t stick to the limit. Instead, he unloaded a series of direct, no-nonsense proposals aimed squarely at prescription drug costs and billing abuse.

As Benzinga reported, Cuban’s response centered around breaking up the power held by pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs. “They removed their leverage,” he said, arguing that formularies should be separated from PBMs and the companies they control.

He also pushed for a policy that would force Medicare Advantage and Part D plans to buy medications from any source offering a cheaper rate than what patients are currently paying out of pocket.

Cuban didn’t stop there. He proposed banning specialty pricing tiers, enforcing transparency in cash prices, and going so far as to make provider CEOs personally liable for fraud.

“Put together a financing plan for all healthcare out-of-pocket costs, held by the provider, guaranteed by the Feds. And personally guaranteed against fraud by provider CEOs (to end provider fraud),” he added.

Mark Cuban’s Shark Tank run hasn’t just made for good TV, it’s been a serious financial win. The billionaire investor shared with CNBC Make It that he had invested “about $33 million” on the show, pulling in up to $35 million in cash returns. But the real value? His stake in the businesses now totals “at least $250 million.”

Cuban shared his perspective with Fortune, summing up 13 years of strategic bets.

“I’m f***ing crushing it on the market,

Though Mark Cuban had once voiced support for Donald Trump, he stood firmly in Harris’s corner throughout her 2024 run.