2016 Postmortem

CajunBlazer

(5,648 posts) Sat Jul 16, 2016, 05:53 PM Jul 2016

Why Did Pence Agree to become Trump’s Running Mate

I guess that everyone’s heard by now why Donald Trump chose the Governor of Indiana, Mike Pence, to be his Vice Presidential candidate. Apparently it took yet another family “intervention” to save The Donald from himself and convince him to chose someone who would help him unite his fractured party, a choice once made he apparently regretted. Then again, with many potential Republican candidates running away from Trump, he didn’t have a whole lot of good options. All of this brings up the question of what happens when Trump becomes President of the United States and is completely freed from the constraints of a campaign; who is going to be able to keep him destroying himself and the country as well? But that’s a topic for a different article.

The question today is why did Mike Pence give up the Indiana governor’s office to play second fiddle to an egotistical reality TV star suffering from a narcissistic personality disorder that has aspirations of being the most powerful person in the world? After all, Trump’s bid to become President is anything but a slam dunk. Currently election statistician Nate Silver gives him only a 33.1% chance of winning the election while Las Vegas casinos will give 9/4 you odds if you bet on him to win meaning he is worse than a 2 to 1 underdog.

Also, it’s not like Pence is in the middle of his term so if the duo loses he can go back to being Governor. Pence is running for reelection for a second term and Indiana law prevents him from running for Governor and Vice President at the same time. So when he became Trump’s running mate he had to withdraw from the Governor’s race. So if the Trump/Pence duo loses in November, Trump can go back to running is business empire, but Pence will be out of a job.

So why did Pence do it. Perhaps a recent article originally posted 5/18/16 on the Indianapolis based WTHR TV 13 website about a recent Indiana Governor’s race poll provides some insights into the Governor’s thinking:

Why Did Pence Agree to become Trump’s Running Mate

9 replies

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Highlight:

Why Did Pence Agree to become Trump’s Running Mate (Original Post) CajunBlazer Jul 2016 OP

Who is the Democrat running for the governor gig, and does he have a shot? MADem Jul 2016 #1

John Gregg ehrnst Jul 2016 #3

He sounds ... OK (brilliant, if you compare him to Pence) --is he known and likable? MADem Jul 2016 #4

Fascinating analysis PJMcK Jul 2016 #2

The thing about this is.... CajunBlazer Jul 2016 #5

i heard Mitch Daniels is expected to run and will win if he did JI7 Jul 2016 #6

Who is Mitch Danials? CajunBlazer Jul 2016 #7

Indiana gov before pence JI7 Jul 2016 #8

Easy why Pence did it; ericson00 Jul 2016 #9

MADem

(135,425 posts)

1. Who is the Democrat running for the governor gig, and does he have a shot?

Reply to CajunBlazer (Original post)

Sat Jul 16, 2016, 07:05 PM

Jul 2016

Could it be Pence's internal polling looked worse than the media knows?

I don't follow IN politics at all, so I've no idea.

ehrnst

(32,640 posts)

3. John Gregg

Reply to MADem (Reply #1)

Sat Jul 16, 2016, 07:23 PM

Jul 2016

http://www.greggforgovernor.com/

MADem

(135,425 posts)

4. He sounds ... OK (brilliant, if you compare him to Pence) --is he known and likable?

Reply to ehrnst (Reply #3)

Sat Jul 16, 2016, 07:52 PM

Jul 2016

He also sounds like he knows what it takes to win in a right leaning state. He won't be on the ramparts for the social issues we hold dear, but anyone who is would not be elected. He's running on basic bread-and-butter stuff.

An experienced and well-regarded public servant, John Gregg has spent more than 30 years working to bring people together to get things done. A former university president, former Speaker of the Indiana House, businessman, and small business owner, John Gregg is running for governor because he wants to serve all Hoosiers. He will use his experience to focus on the things that matter, like growing the economy, improving schools, fixing our roads and bridges, and addressing crime in our communities, rather than social issues that only distract and divide us. John Gregg is the leader Indiana needs now.

MORE ABOUT JOHN

(see link above)

PJMcK

(22,037 posts)

2. Fascinating analysis

Reply to CajunBlazer (Original post)

Sat Jul 16, 2016, 07:07 PM

Jul 2016

Thanks for posting the link, CajunBlazer. That is an interesting and thoughtful view of Governor Pence's position.

In brief, his reelection as Governor was in jeopardy. By being the white night- bringing government experience to the ticket- he wins for losing. After the loss in November, he'll be viewed as a team player giving him a national profile for future elective offices.

It's a smart move by Governor Pence. Too bad he's an idiot like Donald Trump.

CajunBlazer

(5,648 posts)

5. The thing about this is....

Reply to CajunBlazer (Original post)

Sat Jul 16, 2016, 09:27 PM

Jul 2016

It looks like Indiana is going to have a Democratic Governor. Pence was unopposed in the Republican Primary. I don't know how the Republicans figure out who to throw in at this late date.