With the planned announcement still nearly 24 hours away, multiple news organizations began reporting Thursday afternoon that presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump would select Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as his vice presidential running mate, completing the GOP ticket a few days before the party’s nominating convention.
First reported by Roll Call, the news was later confirmed via multiple sources, including The New York Times.
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Pence, a buttoned-down, serious figure who spent more than a decade representing Indiana in Congress before running for governor, feels like an uncharacteristically safe pick for Trump, who had spent far more public time with firebrand former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and brash New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
For a campaign that has moved from outrage to outrage, capitalizing on free publicity and its supporters’ delight in its unscripted nature, Pence may be an odd fit. Neither loud nor prone to demagoguery, he’s not the sort of politician who, like Trump, revels in stadium appearances. He has a fairly active Twitter account, but on cursory examination, it appears not to be Pence’s outlet of choice for insulting rivals and people who annoy him in some way.
In addition, Trump has run an insurgent campaign, disdaining traditional politicians and promising to shake up the old order if he’s elected. Pence is nothing if not an inside man: He served 12 years in the House of Representatives, was elected chairman of the House Republican Conference, and is now a sitting governor.
As many observers will point out, though, there is a strong argument that, for Team Trump, a boring political insider may have some appeal. With an even keel and substantial governing experience, Pence brings two elements to the ticket that Trump rather conspicuously lacks.
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What remains to be seen is the role Pence will play in determining policy in a Trump organization that has shown little appetite for it. The presumptive nominee’s representatives, for example, practically ceded control of the committee drafting the platform for next week’s convention to religious conservatives.
Pence, himself a strong cultural and political conservative, is now apparently poised to run with a man who many in the party believe may actually be neither. If he can convince the conservative elements of the party who have resisted Trump that he will have the ability to shape policy to their liking in a Trump administration, his nomination as vice president might do the Republican ticket some good.
However, that’s a big “if.” So far, it doesn’t appear that many people have the ability to influence Donald Trump.
