NEW YORK — After nearly 24 hours of drama and intrigue, Donald Trump announced on Twitter Friday morning that he had picked Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as his vice presidential running mate. Trump said he would appear with Pence at a news conference Saturday.
The
decision came after a wild day of rumors on Thursday, when multiple
news organizations reported that Trump had picked Pence, only to have
campaign aides quickly deny it. Trump had been scheduled to appear with
his vice presidential candidate Friday morning, but delayed the
event citing the deadly truck attack in Nice, France.
“In
light of the horrible attack in Nice, France, I have postponed
tomorrow’s news conference concerning my Vice Presidential
announcement,” Trump said in a Twitter message.
Pence
landed in New York Thursday evening and was expected to meet with Trump
aides before joining the candidate at Friday’s news conference. But
about a half-hour after the governor’s arrival, Trump, in Los Angeles as
part of a two-day fundraising swing, suddenly canceled the event.
A
short while later, around the same time that reporters observed Pence
being escorted into a hotel near Trump Tower, Trump called Fox News,
where he told host Greta Van Susteren that he was still undecided on who
should join him on the GOP ticket. “I have not made my final, final
decision,” Trump said.
On
Friday morning, Paul Manafort, Trump’s campaign chairman, suggested
that Trump had made his final decision but also said the vice
presidential nominee wouldn’t be final until the candidate himself made
the announcement. “Until he announces it, it’s not final,” Manafort told
CNN.
It
was yet another unexpected development in what was an unusually visible
process for a choice that most candidates typically shroud in intense
secrecy. But Trump, who has never been a traditional candidate, bucked
the norms, conducting a whirlwind public audition process that spanned
roughly two weeks. Last week, the New York real estate mogul appeared
with Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker — who subsequently took himself out of
the running for the position. That appearance was followed by a joint
rally with former House Speaker Newt Gingrich in Cincinnati, while New
Jersey Gov. Chris Christie introduced Trump at a policy speech Monday in
Virginia Beach, Va.
Pence was the last prospective candidate to appear with Trump, joining him onstage Tuesday night at
a rally outside Indianapolis. The next morning, Trump met privately
with Pence again in Indianapolis — this time joined by Trump’s adult
children — in a flurry of meetings with prospective running mates,
including Gingrich and Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions, both of whom flew to
Indiana to meet with the GOP presidential candidate.
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