Indiana governor Mike Pence is Trump's presumed running mate. You may just think that Pence is just any other conservative governor from a conservative state. But, as someone from Indiana, I can tell you that he's not just that. Let's take a look into who Mike Pence is and his background as governor.
Pence does have plenty of political experience (something Trump lacks). Mike Pence has been the governor of Indiana since 2013. Before he was elected governor, he represented Indiana in Congress beginning in the year 2000. He also went to law school.
He seems to have a lot of the important things down. His website highlights his accomplishments in the areas of healthcare, education, economy, energy, red tape, and budget. His website states that he has reduced debt in Indiana by $11.6 million and has not added any new debt.
But, when you hear anyone from Indiana talk about Mike Pence, they're not talking about his accomplishments. They're talking about his laws against abortion and LGBT rights.
Pence began the movement to defund Planned Parenthood back in 2007. Some of his other notable works over the past two years are House Bill 1337 and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). These, however, were not notable for the right reasons. Pence signed each of these into law, and it caused absolute outrage not only in the state of Indiana, but nationwide. You might remember hearing about these things in the news.
House Bill 1337 was the most recent, and caused outrage among pro-choicers and even some pro-lifers. The bill "prohibits a person from performing an abortion if the person knows that the pregnant woman is seeking the abortion solely because of: (1) the race, color, national origin, ancestry, or sex of the fetus; or (2) a diagnosis or potential diagnosis of the fetus having Down syndrome or any other disability." House Bill 1337 was called the "death of women's rights in Indiana" and the "strictest abortion law in the nation."
But before House Bill 1337, there was the RFRA, which caused an even bigger outcry nationwide. RFRA gave businesses the right to discriminate against LGBT people. This led to many businesses boycotting Indiana. The RFRA cost the state $60 million.
The state is still recovering from the aftermath of RFRA, and so is Pence. As of May 2016, Pence only holds a 40 percent approval rating in his state. His choice as Trump's VP may bring more positive coverage of him in the future, but for now, we still dwell on his past.
In short, Pence is a conservative's dream. It was a smart move on Trump's part to choose Pence because Trump knows that he is not getting conservative support like he should be. Let's see how this move affects the race.
