Donald Trump has chosen Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as his running mate, a sign that the volatile NY business mogul hopes to stabilize his campaign as he prepares to accept the Republican nomination for president next week at the party’s convention in Cleveland.
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New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, 53, a former rival to Trump in the presidential race, is also high on the list of potential running mates and provides the kind of counterpunch to Democratic rival Hillary Clinton that Republicans like.
Sabato’s Crystall Ball, a political analysis blog run by the University of Virginia Center for Politics, said that while vice presidential picks rarely matter in presidential elections Pence could help overcome some of Trump’s weaknesses.
The Podesta email claimed Pence “spearheaded an anti-LGBT law that legalized discrimination against the LGBT community” – a reference to the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which the state later revised – and notes that he led the battle to defund Planned Parenthood.
“Mike Pence is a friend, but more than that, he is a strong conservative reformer who has delivered results for the people of Indiana”, Haley said in a statement.
Trump revealed his choice of Pence as his Vice President on Friday after previously indicating that he would delay the announcement due to the terrorist attack in Nice, France. “We look forward to continuing to work with Governor Pence to promote the important role agriculture, including IN corn and soybean farmers, plays IN our nation’s economy”. But in an interview with Fox News that night Trump said he had not “made my final, final decision”.
The reaction to the Pence choice from Republican officials was overwhelmingly positive – no small feat for Trump given how polarizing he’s been within his own party.
Pence is also seen as having a cool-headed tone and steady hand that could counter the impulsive, often brash Trump, and his social conservatism could allay fears about Trump’s views on issues such as abortion.
On the other hand, he came out against Trump’s plan to halt all Muslim immigration to the USA, tweeting last December that “calls to ban Muslims from entering the US are offensive and unconstitutional”.
It will be a short campaign among Indiana Republicans vying replace Mike Pence as the party’s candidate for governor.
However, the two differ on a range of issues crucial to Trump’s candidacy.
When the Federal Bureau of Investigation charged an 18-year-old with terror-related charges, Pence avoided his running mate’s hyperbolic language.
Now that he’s Donald Trump’s running mate, Mike Pence has withdrawn from the IN governor’s race. He is a huge supporter of expanding free trade through agreements like the Trans-Pacific Partnership that make it easier for employers to outsource production to other countries, costing American jobs.
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“Great pick. @mike_pence is rock solid”, tweeted former 2016 presidential candidate Marco Rubio, a United States senator from Florida.
