H/t reader squodgy:
Now there’s a thought….
ed note {Tony}…Imagine this scenario; Trump wins election. Trump ‘slips on a banana peel’. Netanyahu crony Pence (L-Likud) becomes President. An ‘LBJ’ scenario all over again. I digress……..
For me Trump does not have to ‘slip on a banana peel’, because he and Hilllary are already the best puppets money can buy:
– Hillary Clinton: Destroy Syria For Israel
– Hillary Clinton: ‘America’s Commitment To Israel’s Security Is Rock Solid And Unwavering’
– Trump Picks Mike Pence As Vice President:
Update 2:
- GOV. PENCE DROPPING RE-ELECTION BID, INDIANAPOLIS STAR REPORTS
Update: It appears Trump is not too excited about his big announcement tomorrow having been leaked.
- TRUMP SPOKESMAN MILLER SAYS TRUMP HASN’T MADE VP DECISION YET
- TRUMP VP SELECTION IN `NEAR FUTURE’: CAMPAIGN CHAIR MANAFORT
* * *
While probably not much of a surprise to those who have been closely following the republican vice presidential race, moments ago Roll Call reported, citing a source, that Trump will pick Indiana governor Mike Pence as his vice president.
From the source:
Donald Trump is planning to announce that Indiana Gov. Mike Pence is his choice for his vice presidential running mate, according to a Republican with direct knowledge of the decision.
As Trump narrowed in on his choice of Pence, the two men spent time at both Trump’s golf resort in New Jersey in early July and at the Indiana governor’s mansion this week.In addition to testing the men’s chemistry together, Trump was reportedly impressed with Pence’s calm demeanor, his experience on Capitol Hill and as a governor, and Pence’s potential to assist Trump in governing, should the ticket win in November.
The announcement will be made publicly at an event at Trump Tower at 11 a.m. Friday morning.
In addition to Pence, Trump has considered former speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Army Gen. Michael Flynn for the No. 2 spot on his ticket. Some contenders, including Sens. Bob Corker of Tennessee and Joni Ernst of Iowa, took themselves out of the running.
As Reuters adds, the two Republicans spent time this month testing their chemistry at Trump’s golf course in New Jersey and at the governor’s residence in Indiana. Trump was impressed with Pence’s calm manner and his experience on Capitol Hill and as governor, the news outlet reported.
Pence had backed a Trump rival, Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, in April before the Indiana primary, but he praised the New York businessman and said he would work on behalf of the eventual Republican nominee. Trump won Indiana anyway, prompting Cruz to drop out of the party race to be the nominee for the Nov. 8 presidential election.
Pence had considered running for president himself in 2016 before deciding to run for re-election as governor. Conservatives had urged him to seek the White House, but missteps in 2015 related to an Indiana law seen as anti-gay hurt his national profile.
This year, he was the target of a mocking social media campaign by women outraged at a law he signed creating new restrictions on abortions. Feeling that the law invaded their privacy, women responded by calling Pence’s office to describe their menstrual periods or tweeting similar messages.
Pence ran unsuccessfully for Congress twice before he was elected to the House of Representatives in 2000, where he was chairman of the Republican Study Committee, a group of conservatives.
Earlier today, Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill predicted that Donald Trump would pick Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as his running mate because the presumptive Republican presidential nominee is mostly concerned about “looks.”
“Donald Trump cares more about how people look than the substance,” McCaskill said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” basing her prediction on “how Pence looks.”
“[Trump] cares more about the appearance, on his polling and on his magazine covers and how beautiful his wife is,” said McCaskill, who said it was “terrific” that Trump’s wife, Melania, a former model, was beautiful.
“I think he will pick Pence because he looks like somebody who would hang out with Donald Trump: He’s handsome and cuts a smart figure, but he isn’t going to overshadow Trump,” she said.
It appears that she was right, although we are confident that Trump will contest the proposed justification.
* * *
Courtesy of BallotPedia, here is a quick recap of the relatively unknown Pence’s key position points:
Veto override
On June 19, 2013, the Indiana legislature overturned Pence’s veto of a bill that retroactively authorized a local tax. Lawmakers overrode the governor’s veto in a 68-23 vote in the House and 34-12 vote in the Senate[12] Republican legislators overwhelmingly voted against the Republican governor, while most Democratic legislators supported his veto.
One of three bills vetoed by Pence during the session, the local measure, called the Jackson-Pulaski tax fix, addressed a 15-year-old county income tax that had been imposed to fund the construction of jail facilities. The income tax had been created with the stipulation that the tax be lowered by one percent after the first several years; however, the reduction was not implemented. County residents therefore had continued to pay an additional one percent tax that they were legally not required to pay. The Jackson-Pulaski tax fix, which was passed by a large majority of legislators, would have allowed the erroneously-collected money to be kept by the government rather than returned to the taxpayers.
Pence’s communications director, Christy Denault, said that he “stands by his veto, and regrets that it was not upheld by the Indiana General Assembly today. While this bill contained some positive provisions, the Governor believes that when Hoosiers pay taxes that are not owed, they should be offered relief. Hoosiers can be assured that Governor Pence and his administration will continue to put taxpayers first.”
Republicans argued that the veto itself would have been unfair had it been sustained, as taxpayers across the state would have had to fund the effort to calculate refunds owed to the taxpayers in Jackson and Pulaski counties, thereby shifting the financial burden. The bill also included tax breaks and benefits for veterans and veteran families that many legislators were unwilling to see vetoed. “Sustaining this veto will be a tax increase on the innocent spouses of disabled (and) deceased veterans, a tax increase through no fault of their own,” said Senator Brandt Hershman (R-7). “Sustaining the veto will be a vote against the innocent taxpayers in Pulaski and Jackson counties who still regardless of our action here … have to fund a jail.”
Tax reductions
Pence made a 10 percent income-tax rate cut a priority for 2013.[15] Legislators agreed to reduce the income tax by 5 percent and discontinue the state’s estate tax. Speaker of the House Brian Bosma (R) said of the deal, “What we ended up doing was putting together a collective tax package that results in the largest tax cut in our state’s history, about $1.1 billion dollars.”
In 2014, Indiana had the third highest state tax collections per capita at $2,553.
Stance on Syrian refugee resettlement
Following the Paris attacks on November 13, 2015, in which members of the Islamic State (ISIS) killed at least 129 people and wounded more than 350, reports surfaced showing that one of the individuals responsible for the attacks in Paris may have come to France posing as a Syrian refugee. In response, many governors issued statements of support or opposition to President Obama’s plan to allow 10,000 new Syrian refugees into the United States. Pence had conditional opposition to the resettlement of Syrian refugees in the state of Indiana. According to The Indianapolis Star, Gov. Pence was directing all state agencies to stop resettling Syrian refugees in Indiana until the federal government could provide assurances that “proper security measures are in place.” He said that his “first responsibility is to ensure the safety and security of all Hoosiers.”
LGBT civil rights
In his 2016 state of the state address, Pence said he would prioritize religious freedom in the debate over civil rights protections for gay and transgender people. His half-hour televised speech, delivered before legislators on January 12, was consistent with his stated stance during the spring 2015 debate over Indiana’s controversial Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which he signed in March. That law nullified other state laws that “substantially burden” an individual’s ability to follow one’s religious beliefs. In his state of the state address, Pence said that people should not be mistreated because of “who they love or what they believe” but that “no one should ever fear persecution because of their deeply held religious beliefs.”
He added, “I will not support any bill that diminishes the religious freedom of Hoosiers or interferes with the constitutional rights of our citizens to live out their beliefs in worship, service or work.”
The group Indiana Competes, which represents business interests such as Cummins Inc., Eli Lilly and Co., and the NCAA, expressed disappointment with Pence’s stance. Spokesman Peter Hanscom said Pence’s words would not stop discrimination against gay people in employment, housing, and public accommodation.
There were bills pending in the legislature at the time of Pence’s remarks that mixed new LGBT protections with religious exemptions, but Pence did not specifically mention any bills
Obamacare and 9/11
During a June 2012 GOP House meeting, Pence was reported to have compared the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision on “Obamacare” to the terrorist attacks of September 11. Pence immediately apologized, stating, “My remarks at the Republican Conference following the Supreme Court decision were thoughtless. I certainly did not intend to minimize any tragedy our nation has faced and I apologize.
* * *
PayPal: Donate in USD
PayPal: Donate in EUR
PayPal: Donate in GBP