Pence on Brink of Trump Ticket? a Trump-Pence Ticket Gov
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V21, 43 Thursday, July 7, 2016 Pence on brink of Trump ticket? A Trump-Pence ticket Gov. Mike Pence and potential roils the Donald Trump Indiana political scene meet at the Governor’s By BRIAN A. HOWEY Residence INDIANAPOLIS – In an election in April be- cycle that couldn’t be any more bizarre, fore Pence surreal, toxic or polarizing, the next endorsed unpredictable chapter could return to Ted Cruz. Indiana in the next several days as Donald (IndyStar Trump bromances Photo) with Gov. Mike Pence. The two will link up at 5:30 p.m. next Tuesday at the Columbia Club, campaign spokesman Marc Lotter confirmed that where the Manhattan billionaire will host a high-dollar Pence will attend. His political future lies in the magnificent ($250,000 to $2,700) fundraiser, coming just three days brain of the mercurial Trump, who has flipped and flopped before the Indiana governor faces a drop dead ballot through an array of policy issues and political stances. deadline. The Trump campaign is indicating it will make a NBC News is reporting that the vice presidential decision next week, a change from an earlier stance that the veepstakes would end at the RNC in Cleveland. Pence Continued on page 3 A political indictment By BRIAN A. HOWEY INDIANAPOLIS – Hillary Clinton will not face criminal charges over her private server email controversy. But in announcing that prosecution won’t happen, FBI Director James Comey couldn’t have been more damning of the presumptive Democratic “I will admit that I’m a Mike presidential nominee. If anything took a hit, it Pence fan. He is so well rounded, was confidence in the system served as governor and I think that Republican presumptive nominee Donald Trump calls he’s a great conservative. So I “rigged.” “Our judgment is that no don’t think he could go wrong.” reasonable prosecutor would - U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, who bring such a case,” Comey an- nounced on Tuesday morning dropped out of the Trump in yet another surreal moment veepstakes Wednesday in the 2016 presidential race. Page 2 It was an unusual press conference And Comey talked about to begin with, coming, literally, at the “sophisticated adversaries,” saying, time that Hillary Clinton was boarding “She also used her personal email Air Force 1 with President Obama for extensively while outside the United their first joint campaign appearance. States, including sending and receiv- The lead-up to that recom- ing work-related emails in the territory mendation is enough fodder to fuel of sophisticated adversaries. Given Trump and Super PAC TV ads against that combination of factors, we assess Clinton for the rest of the cycle. it is possible that hostile actors gained “Although we did not find access to Secretary Clinton’s personal Howey Politics Indiana clear evidence that Secretary Clinton email account.” WWHowey Media, LLC 405 or her colleagues intended to violate This comes after Clinton had Massachusetts Ave., Suite laws governing the handling of classi- repeatedly said there were never clas- 300 Indianapolis, IN 46204 fied information, there is evidence that sified emails on what we now know they were extremely were multiple servers www.howeypolitics.com careless in their han- outside of the security dling of very sensi- purview, with Clinton Brian A. Howey, Publisher tive, highly classified insisting in 2015, “There Mark Schoeff Jr., Washington information,” Comey were no security breach- Jack E. Howey, Editor said of the former es.” secretary of state. Yikes. Mary Lou Howey, Editor “There is evidence to Washington Post “Fix” Maureen Hayden, Statehouse support a conclusion blogger Chris Cillizza Mark Curry, photography that any reasonable observed, “It’s hard to person in Secretary read Comey’s statement Clinton’s position, as anything other than a Subscriptions or in the position of wholesale rebuke of the HPI, HPI Daily Wire $599 those with whom she story Clinton and her HPI Weekly, $350 was corresponding campaign team have Ray Volpe, Account Manager about those matters, been telling ever since 317.602.3620 should have known that an unclas- the existence of her private email sified system was no place for that server came to light in spring 2015. email: [email protected] conversation.” She did send and receive classified Contact HPI Comey noted that 113 emails emails. The setup did leave her, and [email protected] were classified, and eight were top the classified information on the serv- Howey’s cell: 317.506.0883 secret. er, subject to a possible foreign hack. The hits kept coming. ”Only She and her team did delete emails as Washington: 202.256.5822 a very small number of the emails personal that contained professional Business Office: 317.602.3620 containing classified information bore information.” markings indicating the presence of Bloomberg Politic’s Mark © 2016, Howey Politics classified information,” Comey contin- Halperin called it “a political indict- Indiana. All rights reserved. ued. “But even if information is not ment” of the former secretary of state. marked ‘classified’ in an email, partici- U.S. Sen. Dan Coats, who Photocopying, Internet forward- pants who know or should know that serves on the Senate Intelligence ing, faxing or reproducing in the subject matter is classified are still Committee, said, “While the FBI is not any form, whole or part, is a obligated to protect it.” recommending indictment for Secre- violation of federal law without Then there were the hack- tary Clinton, the agency’s investigation permission from the publisher. ers. “We do assess that hostile actors is a harsh indictment of her decision- gained access to the private com- making and judgment while serving in mercial email accounts of people with one of the most important positions in whom Secretary Clinton was in regular the U.S. government. Whether it was contact from her personal account,” gross negligence or blatant disregard, Comey said. “We also assess that it is undeniable that Secretary Clinton Secretary Clinton’s use of a personal broke federal law and mishandled email domain was both known by a classified information, putting Ameri- large number of people and readily can lives at risk and endangering our apparent.” national security.” Page 3 Comey’s puzzling nario for Democrats, enticing Vice conclusion that no “reason- President Joe Biden into the race. So able prosecutor” would bring this is actually a better scenario for charges had people across the Republicans than an indictment. spectrum shaking their heads. But there is no doubt that the For a generation now, “establishment” took another big we’ve watched the Bill and Hill- hit. So does the trust factor that has ary soap operas spread a wide prompted 69% of voters in a recent swath of personal destruction NBC/Wall Street Journal to say they to friends, aides and allies. But don’t trust Clinton. And that is fuel on Tuesday morning, that wake for the Trump fire. Or as Trump put seemed to catch up with Sec. it in Cincinnait last night, “The FBI Clinton. She leads in the polls did me a favor. I would rather face in most swing states, but not her than almost anybody else.” by much. Her national leads, These past few days we’ve other than one ABC/Washington Post outlier poll released watched Trump stumble over his Star of David tweet last week, are close to the margin of error. criticized as anti-Semitic that obscured Clinton’s Saturday It gave Trump a predictable opening, a rare oc- interview with the FBI. He defended it again last night. currence. “The system is rigged,” Trump tweeted. “General And then came his praise of Saddam Hussein, in Trump’s Petraeus got in trouble for far less. Very very unfair! As view a killer of terrorists and not a perpetrator of genocide usual, bad judgment.” on the innocents. The lack of criminal charges will keep Clinton in Now Clinton credibility has sustained another the race. An indictment might have forced her out, leaving broadside. Both Trump and Clinton have a long history of a Democratic National Convention scenario of nominating manipulating the facts and, well, lying. the socialist Bernie Sanders, or perhaps the best sce- Are these the leaders we deserve? v Gingrich responded bluntly: “Listen, we’d be willing to Trump/Pence, from page 1 consider it. Like is a pretty strong term.” nomination appears to be between Pence and former Several influential Hoosier Republicans speculate House speaker Newt Gingrich, who appeared with Trump that Pence may know he’s on the inside track. Rex Early, at a rally in Cincinnati on Wednesday. “In one form or Trump’s Indiana campaign chairman, said on Wednesday, another, Newt Gingrich is “I think it’s 60/40 that Pence gets it. He’s got so many going to be involved with our things going for him. Trump needs the Cruz government, that I can tell people. Cruz finished second out of 17 and you,” Trump said. “He’s going the Cruz people wonder if Trump is truly to be involved. He’s smart, a conservative. They don’t have to worry he’s tough, he gets it. I’m about Mike. When you look at all the things not saying it’s Newt, but if it’s he can add, no one can touch him.” In Newt, nobody’s going to be Early’s view, Gingrich and New Jersey Gov. beating him in those debates, Chris Christie would have a tendency to that’s for sure, right? Nobody. upstage the boss. Nobody’s beating Newt in the Pollster Kellyanne Conway, who debates.” polls for Pence and now Trump, told NBC NBC describes a “vo- News, “When Hillary Clinton promised to cal camp” inside Trump Tower put the coal industry out of work in West pushing for Pence.