It all starts today; today of course being July 18, 2016, also known as the first day of the Republican National Convention.
Unless the GOP has been hiding something from us, I wouldn't expect an overly wild celebration, but that also doesn’t mean all stops won’t be pulled out. With four days that are packed with world-class leaders, the GOP convention is sure to bring mild entertainment to our television screens.
Following the GOP Convention is of course the Democratic Convention, expected to provide the same amount of excitement as their enemies on the right did. See, the days of not knowing who the nominee would be for both parties are long gone. Today primaries and caucuses along with the media give us large indicators of who will dominate those stages in July.
I’m not here to critique the world of politics for its progressive movement towards technology, but to instead offer some basic facts on the Republican Vice Presidential Candidate, Mike Pence.
So let’s begin to understand who Mike Pence is.
Michael Richard Pence, known to his friends and much of the public as Mike, was born on June 7, 1959 in Columbus, Ind. He was one of six children born to a middle-class Irish-Catholic family. Growing up in Indiana, he met the love of his life. In 1985, they married had three children, and his political career flourished. Sound familiar yet?
His family background is similar to that of many of the most well-known leaders of the GOP party. His Irish-Catholic household didn’t come from substantial wealth but he built himself a legacy. That sounds like the majority of Republicans from the old school boy-dominated days. He is a classic example of a shining Republican from an era where they controlled it all, an individual that can balance yet add fuel to Trump’s controversial commentary.
His political career has been one filled with wild criticism as his often-outlandish comments have landed him in the doghouse. On March 31, 2015 he would land himself in the biggest doghouse yet as he signed a “religious freedom” bill. The bill similar to the widely publicized South Carolina bill gave businesses an ability to discriminate against the LGBT community due to religious views. After a rather long media stint to negate the unpopular opinion of this new legislation, he made public announcements promising to fix the bill. Many still argue he never kept that promise.
Besides his most well known stunt as Indiana governor, it wasn’t his first political outcry that cost him minimal votes and support. Following the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the Affordable Care Act, he linked the act to the 9/11 terrorist attacks during a closed-door meeting. While he went on to later apologize, the damage had already been done.
Regardless of public opinion, Mike Pence felt comfortable with the backing he received, primarily at the hand of his well-known “brothers” Charles and David Koch, or as you might know them the Koch Brothers. Making footprints early on the latest presidential campaigns, he visited primary states years ahead of the official campaign timeline, but nevertheless he never became a contender.
The greatest indicator of his vying for the presidency came during a 2014 family trip to Israel. Known as another common destination for presidential hopefuls, he had a rather positive meeting with the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as was seen in a video posted on Netanyahu’s Twitter.
While he may never have officially made a run for the position, he still has a shot at becoming one of the world’s most powerful men. Regardless of leading a rather controversial political life not only as a congressman, but also as the 50th Indiana governor, Pence's second greatest accomplishment came in 1991. During the fall of 1991, he wrote one of the most well-known political works, “Confessions of a Negative Campaigner,” which sparked talk around the growing sensation of negative political campaigning. In this work, he talked greatly how he personally was wrong for running negative campaigns and how we needed to change the political game.
His political legacy will be the talk of Cleveland and the world for the next several days. Rather still unknown by many, his career in politics is long from over, especially with backing from the Koch Brothers.
Before I conclude this article that has told you primarily about his political profession, let me tell you a little more about him from a non-political agenda.
He is the father of three children. His son is the oldest and a Marine Corps officer, while their oldest daughter recently graduated from college as a filmmaker. Their youngest is a college student at Hanover College who has given her father the largest run for his political career. Regardless of their differences in opinion, Pence is proud that his daughter has formed her own beliefs.
Besides the family he adores, Pence once hosted his own talk radio show and TV show in Indiana during the '90s, which is considered the height of his career. These media opportunities gave Pence a new catchphrase that he can often be heard repeating: “I’m a conservative, but I’m not angry about it.”
While his political agenda will keep him in the light for years to come, Pence is similar to you and I. You may not agree with his political statements, but he is just like the average American. His favorite dessert is ice cream, specifically Moose Tracks, his favorite superhero is Superman, and his favorite movie is “The Wizard of Oz."
We will never know everything about Pence and while I could tell you all the facts out there about him, it would take days if not weeks. He is an old school conservative who has been selected by Trump as his running mate, regardless of their disagreements on some political policies.
Remember to know your candidates before you vote; we need to be smart, vigilant, and well informed come November.
