Donald Trump took credit on Wednesday for his running mate’s standout performance in the vice presidential debate, claiming that Mike Pence gave American voters a “firsthand” look at his judgment.
“Mike Pence did an incredible job and I’m getting a lot of credit because that’s really my first so-called choice,” the Republican presidential nominee said at a rally in Henderson, Nev.
“That was my first hire as we would say in Las Vegas,” he quipped. “And I’ll tell you, he was phenomenal. He was cool, he was smart. He was meant to be doing what he’s doing and we’re very, very proud of Gov. Mike Pence.”
Pence’s earned praise from Republicans, including those who’ve long opposed Trump’s candidacy, for demonstrating a command of the issues in Tuesday’s debate against Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine. The Indiana governor, who joined the GOP ticket in mid-July, remained calm and collected throughout the 90-minute discussion despite facing repeated interruptions from his Democratic opponent and the moderator.
“I’d argue that Mike had the single most decisive victory in the history of vice presidential debates,” Trump argued. “And last night America also got to look firsthand at my judgment…”
“You know, you need judgement for people, for deals,” Trump said.
Pence was quick to dismiss rumors following the debate that Trump was unhappy that his running mate had upstaged him.
“Some people think I won, but I’ll leave that to others,” he said at a rally in Virginia Wednesday morning. “What I can tell you is from where I sat, Donald Trump won the debate.”
