Trump Accidentally Attacks His Own Running Mate While Trying To Bash Tim Kaine

Last updated on July 17th, 2023 at 07:14 pm

While trying to attack Tim Kaine on TPP, Donald Trump accidentally leveled his own running mate Mike Pence.

Trump tweeted this attack on Hillary Clinton’s running mate Sen. Tim Kaine:

Tim Kaine has been praising the Trans Pacific Partnership and has been pushing hard to get it approved. Job killer!

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— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2016

The problem for Trump is that his own running mate Gov. Mike Pence has been a huge cheerleader for TPP.

In 2014, Pence tweeted:

Trade means jobs, but trade also means security. The time has come for all of us to urge the swift adoption of the Trans Pacific Partnership

— Governor Mike Pence (@GovPenceIN) September 8, 2014

In an April 2015 letter to Indiana’s congressional delegation, Pence wrote, “As you know, my administration has made job growth job number one. We passed the largest state tax cut in Indiana history, lowered the corporate income tax, reduced the regulatory burden, and have taken numerous other measures to improve the business environment and the education and workforce skills of Hoosiers,” Governor Pence wrote. “Those are things we can do at home, but reducing tariffs and other trade barriers so that Indiana businesses can enjoy increased market access and fairly compete on the world stage is something that Congress must do. I encourage your support for Trade Promotion Authority, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership and any other trade-related measures when they are brought before the Congress for consideration.”

As soon as Trump picked Pence as his VP, he lost the anti-trade argument. Thanks to Pence, the Republican ticket is the more pro-TPP than Clinton and Kaine. If Donald Trump wants to attack somebody for supporting TPP, he should begin with Mike Pence.

Donald Trump has once again opened his mouth and shot himself in the foot.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association