Trump tweeted the announcement on Thursday, writing that he was “pleased” to announce the IN governor as his vice presidential pick.
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“I’m here today to introduce my partner in this campaign and the White House to fix our rigged system – we are in a rigged, rigged system – and to make America safe again, and to make America great again”, Trump said.
On the flip side, Trump has slammed his contender, Hillary Clinton, for her support of the war in Iraq.
On Friday, Pence sought to tamp down any areas of division with Trump, saying he should have chosen his words more carefully.
“I don’t care” that Pence voted in favor of going to war in Iraq when he was in Congress, Trump said.
“But Democratic strategist Matt Bennett said the odd VP introduction and published reports indicating the presumptive GOP nominee was having second thoughts about Pence are indications that the IN governor is “IN for a rough ride” IN the passenger seat of the Trump campaign.
Trump seemed to have trouble staying on topic about Pence.
That cash on hand includes a $50,000 contribution given to the Pence campaign as recently as a week ago from the founder, CEO and spokesman for Papa John’s. He also said the Pence family planned to return to the governor’s residence in Indianapolis for “pizza night”. Ted Cruz instead of Trump ahead of Indiana’s presidential primary. “So many people have said party unity because I’m an outsider”, the real estate tycoon said in Manhattan.
“I accept your invitation to run and serve as vice president of the United States of America”, Pence said.
Unlike Trump, Pence appeared to stick to his script, delivering a conventional speech for a vice presidential nominee, praising God, his family and offering a rundown of his political career and his fidelity to conservatism.
He isn’t required to dissolve the “Mike Pence for Indiana” campaign account. Through no fault of the campaign, the show ended up on a Saturday morning, competing on TV with two global crises: the aftermath of the France attack and news about an attempted military coup in Turkey.
“History teaches us that weakness arouses evil. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama’s foreign policy of leading from behind, moving red lines, feigning resets with a resurgent Russian Federation and the rise of ISIS is a testament to this truth of history and we must bring a change to America’s stand in the world”.
“We can not have four more years apologizing to our enemies and abandoning our friends”, he added.
The underwhelming rollout continued when Pence got back to IN, where a few hundred people greeted him at a suburban Indianapolis airport hangar bereft of any “Trump-Pence” signs or other obvious trappings of a presidential campaign.
The billionaire businessman strode first onto the stage that featured a backdrop of 10 American flags.
Trump’s formal announcement capped a frenzied few days in the presidential campaign, as early reports that Trump has settled on Pence threw speculation into overdrive.
The Northeast might not be the most fertile ground for Republican candidates for national office, but New York, New Jersey and CT will be front-and-center at next week’s Republican National Convention. The ensuing battle over the law saw Pence at odds with Indiana’s business community amid calls for corporations to boycott the state, and his approval rating dropped as much as 15 points in some polls.
“I actually started in politics in the other party, but when I came of age I was inspired by the ideals and the eloquence of our 40th president and I became a Republican”, Pence explained of his respect for Reagan.
Trump has declared himself the most gay-friendly candidate in the election.
In choosing Pence, Trump appeared to be looking past their numerous policy differences.
Although yesterday’s event lacked the usual pizazz of a vice presidential announcement,
Republican strategist Keith
Appell said Trump’s performance won’t matter once voters go to the polls in November.
He brags that they’ve been “crushed”.
Pence got an early look at the roller coaster ride he has signed up for over the next four months in the immediate hours after Trump called him to offer him the job and he flew to NY expecting things to be made official on Friday.
It will take place in the same ballroom where Hillary Clinton and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio raised eyebrows by making a racially-questionable joke during a charity event this spring. They are longtime friends and Mr. Christie is of like mind and persona.
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On Thursday, Trump had convened a midnight campaign conference call about his pick, even after he’d had Pence fly to NY to accept his offer. Her campaign also seized on Trump’s chaotic process for selecting and announcing his pick, painting him in a web video as “Always divisive”.
