The announcement by
Pence has the government experience Trump lacks. He spent a decade in the
Pence has the temperament critics say Trump lacks. He is an evangelical Christian, which should appeal to that base whose members have been troubled by Trump's marital history, his rhetoric about women and his unfamiliarity with scripture.
Pence's record as governor is a profile in conservatism: a 5 percent reduction in the state income tax; a reduction in the state corporation tax from 6.5 percent to 4.9 percent (that must have appealed to Trump who wants to cut corporate taxes to return jobs to the U.S.) and an increase in the state labor force which according to the governor's office, by the end of 2014, had grown by more than 51,000 over that year. That was five times the national growth rate.
Here's what he told me in a
There is something else that will appeal to Trump and a lot of poorer Americans with children trapped in failing schools because Democrats won't let them escape due to pressure and donations from the teachers unions. As governor, Pence set a goal of getting 100,000 more
Pence said he believed 2016 "will be the first foreign policy election since 1980." He was right.
During our interview Pence refused to describe President Obama's time in office as a failure, saying it has only been "disappointing." Don't look for him to be as judicious during the campaign because he has many reasons not to, including the administration's poor record on fighting terrorism.
In what could turn out to be one of his best stump speech lines as he pursues the vice presidency, Pence said: "There's a lot wrong with our national government, but we've got to stop confusing our national government with our nation."
Modest, self-effacing and a man of deep faith in God and America, Pence will be salt to Trump's pepper.
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Cal Thomas, America's most-syndicated columnist, is the author of 10 books.