GOP vice presidential nominee Indiana Gov. Mike Pence assured voters Tuesday that past tensions between House Speaker Paul Ryan and Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump will not affect their ability to work together in accomplishing the party’s common goals.
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“We’re honored to have our friend and colleague today with us who we believe is going to be the next vice president of the United States, Mike Pence joined us today”, House Speaker Paul Ryan told reporters, emerging from the Capitol Hill meeting with Pence and Republican leadership at his side.
With Pence on the Republican ticket, Ryan said, “we feel the wind in our backs”.
Pence had breakfast with Ryan prior to this morning’s conference meeting, according to a Ryan aide. And on Tuesday, when he gathered with House Republican leaders, Pence again expressed frustration with being asked about Duke for a second day.
Asked about Ryan’s previous denunciations of Trump, Pence acknowledged that there have been at times some “differences of opinion” but that his and Trump’s “respect and admiration” for Ryan is “boundless”.
Trump, the billionaire turned presidential candidate, initially alienated many in the Republican establishment with his unconventional campaign, but has increasingly sought to unify the party ahead of the November 8 election.
Mr. Pence is making the rounds on Capitol Hill in an attempt to allay lingering concerns that some GOP lawmakers have about Mr. Trump.
NY congressman Peter King said Pence responded that he has seen polling that shows Trump ahead with married women.
King said Pence argued that Trump can do better with women, pointing to several polls that show him improving with married women.
“When Donald came in July, there was still a little bit of skepticism”. Corker said senators asked questions, made suggestions about how some campaign issues might be addressed differently and were reassured by Pence that he and Trump want “genuine collaboration” with Capitol Hill. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), whom Pence also met with Tuesday, have endorsed Trump.
During the exchange in a closed-door meeting Tuesday morning, Rep. Jeff Fortenberry of Nebraska asked the in governor what to say to his own daughter when she expresses concerns about Trump’s views on women. He remains close with numerous conservative members of the lower chamber. “He’s a strong conservative”. Many saw Trump choosing Pence as his running mate as a peace offering to more traditional Republicans struggling with his hard-to-define populism.
“I would draw no more conclusion of that man’s expressions of support than I would the fact that the father of a terrorist who killed 49 Americans was seen at a Hillary Clinton rally cheering her on”, he continued, referring to the father of the man who opened fire on a nightclub in Orlando, Florida, in June.
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Pence also has a condition known as “left bundle branch block”, which causes the heart’s left ventricle to contract later than the right ventricle.
