America is still reeling from the news that Donald Trump has chosen Mike Pence as his running mate for the 2016 presidential election. Early reports following the announcement seem to indicate that Trump wavered in his decision to choose Pence at the tail end of the selection process. In fact, Some news reports have suggested that, as late as Thursday evening, Donald Trump was on the phone with his campaign associates, discussing the possibility of dropping Pence and naming someone else.
Gov. @Mike_Pence : “It’s reckless & irresponsible for Hillary Clinton to call for an increase in Syrian refugees. pic.twitter.com/sk3C0RhVOj
— TRUMP WORLD (@Trump_World) July 17, 2016
For example, a recent report by Fortune states that “The vetting process had as much last-minute suspense as ‘The Apprentice.’ All the way to the end, each of the finalists for the role of Donald Trump’s running mate believed that history beckoned.” Later in the article, Trump and his campaign is effectively ridiculed for the way the process was handled. The article reads, “Trump’s vice-presidential sweepstakes, which finally wrapped up with a Friday announcement via Twitter that Pence was the pick, was classic Trump in certain ways. The showman milked the moment to maximize publicity, squeezing every last drop of suspense out of a selection process that allies believed was all but over early in the week. It was also characteristically haphazard, marked by changes of direction, muddled communication, and missed opportunities. His team didn’t prepare a new web page, buy search ads, or update social-media accounts to reflect the partnership.”
According to a report by USA Today , Paul Manafort, who is well known for his role as Donald Trump’s campaign aide, told Fox News that there was absolutely no truth to that report and that “there was never any doubt” that Donald Trump would name Mike Pence, currently the governor of Indiana, as his vice-presidential running mate.
Trump’s VP pick Mike Pence is a governor in search of his Republican identity https://t.co/yY2MwOQYuB @fahrenthold @postroz @thamburger
— FrancesSteadSellers (@FrancesSSellers) July 16, 2016
Manafort went on to say that the phone calls Trump made on Thursday evening were simply made to discuss the possible delay of the vice-presidential announcement because of the breaking news about the tragic terrorist attack in Nice, France. In the wake of the tragedy, the campaign eventually did decide to wait to announce Mike Pence as the selectee for Trump’s running mate.
Apparently, Donald Trump was very upset with the news leaks about Pence as his choice. In the wake of the announcement, Trump also heard from supporters of both Newt Gingrich and Chris Christie, each suggesting that his or her respective man would have made a better choice for Vice President than Mike Pence. Newt Gingrich is a former House speaker, and Chris Christie is the governor of New Jersey.
In his interview, Manafort Told Fox that the Trump campaign had flown Mike Pence in to New York on Thursday night. With a poignant response and a level of sarcasm we can only assume Donald Trump would himself appreciate, Manafort said, “he wasn’t there to shop.”
Trump and his new running mate will give their first joint interview at some point today — the interview will air on 60 Minutes .
“ @60Minutes : DonaldTrump and his running mate @Mike_Pence to appear on #60Minutes in first joint interview. CBS https://t.co/lZH7qw9qmu ”
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 17, 2016
It seems that no matter what decision Donald Trump makes during the campaign process, a certain level of drama is never far behind. Whether Trump’s supporters agree or disagree with his choice of running mate remains to be seen. However, one thing is for certain, the campaign trail is heating up rapidly and the American public will very likely see an increase in momentum for Donald Trump and his new running mate as the nation moves toward one of the most atypical elections in our nation’s history.
[Photo by Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images]
