Republican sources had said on Thursday that Trump had decided on Pence, but the campaign had not confirmed this until now
Republican sources had said on Thursday that Trump had decided on Pence, but the campaign had not confirmed this until now.
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump announced Indiana Governor Mike Pence
as his vice presidential running mate on Friday, after postponing an
event on his decision following the deadly truck attack in France.
Republican sources had said on Thursday that Trump had decided on Pence, but the campaign had not confirmed this until now.
Viewed
as a safe pair of hands, Pence, 57, has diverging views with Trump on
his proposed Muslim ban and trade, and is more socially conservative,
but he could help unify a divided party behind Trump's bid to win the
White House in the Nov. 8 election.
"I am
pleased to announce that I have chosen Governor Mike Pence as my Vice
Presidential running mate. News conference tomorrow at 11:00 A.M.," Trump said in a tweet.
Trump
had faced a midday deadline to announce Pence because the governor had
to declare by then whether he would be on the ballot in his home state
for re-election.
Trump, a New York businessman who
has never held elected office, had chosen Pence from a short list that
included two other finalists, former House of Representatives Speaker Newt Gingrich and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.
Trump
said on Thursday he postponed his planned announcement on Friday out of
respect for the victims in Nice, France. An attacker in a heavy truck
drove into crowds celebrating Bastille Day, killing at least 84 people
and injuring scores more in what President Francois Hollande called a terrorist act.
Trump,
70, is set to be formally nominated as the party's candidate for the
presidential election at the convention in Cleveland. Traditionally, the
vice presidential choice is used to build enthusiasm among party
loyalists.
The Republican National Committee expects the convention to draw 50,000 people to Cleveland and U.S. authorities were preparing for the possibility of violence - whether from demonstrators or planned attacks.
The
Cleveland gathering and the Democratic Party Convention the following
week in Philadelphia have been given the status of special national
security event by the federal government for the first time and security
will be heightened, said Republican Party spokesman Sean Spicer.
"They're
just going to make sure that it's the safest place on Earth for the
guests, the attendees, the delegates and the media," Spicer told CNN.
The Department of Homeland Security will send more than 3,000 personnel to each convention, Secretary Jeh Johnson
said on Thursday, speaking before the Nice attack. No specific or
credible threat to either gathering has been reported, he said.
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