Rep. Kevin Cramer says his role in Donald Trump's presidential campaign "has been greatly exaggerated."
The second-term North Dakota Republican-one of the first members of Congress to support the New York businessman's candidacy-said multiple reporters in Washington, D.C., hounded him for three weeks prior to Trump's visit to North Dakota in May, after it was learned Cramer was helping Trump write a speech about energy for the Williston Basin Petroleum Conference.
"Therefore, I'm going to be this secretary of something," Cramer said. "That's a big leap."
Cramer laughed about the assumption that he would have a cabinet position in a Trump administration, though he said a Trump presidency could be beneficial if he gets re-elected in November.
"If I could be a third-term member of the House of Representatives from North Dakota on the Energy and Commerce Committee and have a friend in the White House, I'm really good with that," Cramer said with a smile.
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Cramer said Thursday during a meeting with The Press Editorial Board that he's sticking behind Trump, though he admitted Trump should have run a more disciplined campaign coming out of the Republican National Convention.
While Cramer said he believes there's a "concerted effort" by the media to try and make Trump look bad, "that's not an excuse that he doesn't seem to be very disciplined about what can help him win this election."
He urged Trump to stick to jobs, the economy and national security.
"That's part of what people like about him, is he's not a polished politician that's really politically correct," Cramer said. "At the same time, there's a reason polished politicians are successful."
Cramer held a Coffee with Cramer town hall event Thursday evening at The Brew in downtown Dickinson, where about 30 people asked him about a range of topics, including immigration, retirement pensions, veteran's issues, programs for children with disabilities, transgender bathroom and the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
It was the fifth of eight town halls he's holding across the state this month.
