CLEVELAND-Poor Mike Pence. The Indiana governor, described in news reports on Thursday as the Republican vice presidential pick, awoke Friday morning to speculation among the chattering classes that Trump might be changing his mind. Never mind that: According to the Indianapolis Star, Pence yesterday decided to withdraw from his state's gubernatorial race and hopped a plane to New York, presumably for the big announcement with his new boss-who turned out not to be there.
In short, Pence was getting a taste of what it means to be a friend of Donald J. Trump's. (Just ask Chris "Get on the plane and go home" Christie.)
The suspended animation in which Trump held Pence ended later Friday morning, when Trump tweeted that Pence was his pick. That made Pence the first running mate ever unveiled through Twitter.
But it had been a bumpy ride. On Wednesday, the Trump campaign had said an announcement of the running mate by the presumptive Republican presidential nominee would be made Friday, as Cleveland prepares to host the Republican National Convention on Monday, July 18. Then, after the attack in France that left 84 dead, Trump tweeted that he would delay the announcement out of deference to the dead and wounded. Fair enough.
But then Trump muddied the waters, saying that he hadn't made a "final, final decision." And early Friday morning, campaign manager Paul Manafort, who is said to be a Pence booster, said on Fox & Friends: "I think that Mr. Trump has reached a decision, but he hasn't-he isn't prepared to announce it yet."
As I suggested in my June 3 column, in light of Trump's endorsement by Paul Ryan, Pence would be a likely pick. Trump's closest adviser, though, is his daughter, Ivanka, and she and husband Jared Kushner were reported to favor former House speaker Newt Gingrich as a running mate-perhaps because of the prospect of lots of dough from Gingrich's patron, casino magnate Sheldon Adelson.
Trump, however, needs something that money can't buy him at this late date-an organization, a field operation, a good voter data strategy. And Pence may bring him all that if he can bring along his patrons, Charles and David Koch, the billionaires at the helm of Koch Industries, who have built an entire plug-and-play political infrastructure.
Americans for Prosperity, founded by the Koch brothers, was initially built as a right-wing analog to the get-out-the-vote operations of labor unions. It has grown into a powerhouse, with chapters in 40 states, and has shown it can be instrumental in mobilizing voters. (Scott Walker's election to the governor's mansion in Wisconsin is often attributed to AFP's efforts.) In addition, also in the Koch network are astroturf operations geared at Latinos, millennials and senior citizens.
In addition, the Kochs maintain a donor network, made up chiefly of the principals of privately-held corporations. (Trump's company is also privately-held.) Members of the network spread their wealth amid a panoply of Koch-linked organizations and think tanks, many of which could be quite useful to a presidential campaign.
Until recently, Freedom Partners, the Kochs' vehicle for dispensing that dough, was helmed by former Pence aide Marc Short, who is still said to be a big deal inside Koch World.
And, for years, Pence has been a featured speaker at Americans for Prosperity events. On a 2014 edition of C-SPAN's Newsmakers program, AFP President Tim Phillips called him "one of our favorite governors." During Pence's tenure as governor, AFP has several times sponsored advertising in support of Pence initiatives, such as the epic tax cut he shepherded through the state legislature in 2013, yielding Indiana the distinction of being the state with the 7th lowest tax burden on businesses.
Earlier this year, Pence signed one of the nation's most restrictive abortion laws, earning him the favor of the anti-choice movement, and putting him in step with Trump's misogyny.
Of course, there was that time last year when Pence made leaders of the religious right really, really mad after having made them momentarily really, really happy by signing into law their anti-LGBT hate bill, which would have made it legal for businesses to refuse services to anyone whose existence offended the owners' religious sensibilities. Facing fierce backlash, Pence backed down and pushed through a measure that substantially watered down the so-called "religious freedom" bill.
Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, is still plenty peeved at Pence over this, but I don't think it makes much difference, seeing as how Trump pretty much gave Perkins the whole GOP platform.
In my years covering the Tea Party, Pence was a recurrent presence in their endeavors. Then a member of Congress and of the Republican leadership team, he was underestimated, I believed, if not for his talent, but for his ambition and willingness to do what it takes to find his way to the top.
Today, he's been launched into his party's number-two spot.
