Donald Trump is a scam artist who’s ripped off working class Americans for years with his Trump University and Trump Institute cons, and with his selection of Indiana Governor Mike Pence, he’s sizing up his latest mark: the GOP donor class.
Pence is an extremist, but to the big money donors money and base voters powering the modern Republican party, he’s our extremist, with a solid track record of putting party over country. From threatening to shut down the government to opposing Planned Parenthood funding to opposing saving more than one million American auto jobs and standing with Richard Mourdock after Mourdock declared that forcing rape survivors to bear their attacker’s child was “what God intended” Pence is the consummate Republican insider.
So while Trump continues to tank the GOP, he’s brought in a party favorite mollify the #NeverTrump cohort and ensure that Trump properties can continue their presidential payday– and just maybe that he’ll get to pay himself back some of that $50 million his campaign owes him, too.
Don’t take our word for it, though. Take a look at the cold, hard facts on Mike Pence — who ran six points behind Mitt Romney and didn’t break 50% even while outspending his opponent more than 2-to-1 in 2012– and ask yourself if there’s any swing voter in the country who wants this man a heartbeat away from the Presidency.
Mike Pence is Bad for Working Families
In Congress, Mike Pence opposed raising the minimum wage to $7.25 but supported a 23% value-added tax on everything from groceries to gasoline to fund a giveaway to millionaires, and his record in Indiana isn’t even better. Pence repealed prevailing wage laws, and has long opposed Made-in-America provisions for government, a perfect fit for two-faced outsourcing profiteer Trump.
But never fear– if we give Donald Trump and Mike Pence the keys to the national economy, they’ll get wages down enough for Americans to be cheaper than Chinese labor in a flash. Indiana’s economy has lagged behind national growth and neighboring states, and median household wages in the state have fallen from $53,000 to $46,900 since Pence took office in January 2013.
Mike Pence is Extreme on Social Issues
Pence hasn’t limited himself to economic ruin through legislation– he’s accomplished it through Trump-ian tone deaf leadership and extreme social issue positions as well. Pence rammed the discriminatory “Religious Freedom Restoration Act” through the legislature, then signed it in a secret ceremony, touching off a $250 million economic panic as conventions and corporations moved to make clear that they’d drop Indiana like a hot rock to stand in solidarity with LGBT rights.
Women have also been a frequent target of Pence as he seeks divisive issues for political gain; in Congress he originated the “one man crusade” against Planned Parenthood, and since taking office he’s run afoul of the courts as his efforts to impede women’s access to care has crossed constitutional boundaries.
Mike Pence is Bad for Seniors
While Pence was in Congress, he voted first to privatize Social Security and gamble Americans’ retirement savings with Wall Street, then to raise Medicare costs by more than $6,000 each year and voucherize the program. He’s also in favor of raising the retirement age, and, in what must be a favorite vote for his con artist running mate, was among a tiny minority of members to oppose educating seniors about potential scams like Trump University endangering their retirement.
Published: Jul 15, 2016