BEACHWOOD, Ohio — Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker emphasized party unity Monday and pointed to Indiana Gov. Mike Pence’s selection as Donald Trump’s running mate as a reason for Republicans to support Trump.
“It is clear that whether Donald Trump is your first choice or your second choice or your 17th choice, I hope you understand … that Donald Trump is better than Hillary Clinton,” Walker said at a breakfast meeting hosted by the Iowa delegation to the convention just outside of Cleveland. “And I think better this week because … I know Mike Pence extremely well. Mike Pence is a Midwesterner through and through. He is exactly the kind of leader we need to make sure that with Donald Trump as the next president and Mike Pence as the vice president, he will make it clear that those good, sound Midwestern values are reflected in this administration going forward.”
Walker only mentioned Trump’s name twice in his speech, and mostly focused on the FBI’s decision not to recommend charges against Clinton over the handling of her private emails. When he mentioned Trump after his formal remarks, he said Pence was the best decision Trump has made so far.
“Somebody asked me if my opinion has changed on Donald Trump. I said over time, the most important thing that has improved my opinion of Donald Trump is his pick of Mike Pence,” Walker told a gaggle of reporters.
The Wisconsin governor also touched on his speech before the convention, which is set for Wednesday prior to Pence’s address. He said it would contain a mix of praise for support and to show Republicans stand for, pushing back against the idea that he should do one or the other.
“I don’t think it’s an either/or. I’m going to talk about both,” Walker said. “I’m going to talk about my support for Donald Trump and for Mike Pence, and I’m enthusiastic about that. But I also think it’s important to show Americans what Republicans stand for. A lot of people are going to be tuning in.”
The constant theme of the breakfast was unity, especially among the speakers, which included Sen. Chuck Grassley and Iowa GOP chairman Jeff Kaufmann. Grassley, who is up for re-election in November, cited Clinton’s potential ability to reshape the Supreme Court for generations as a main reason for his support of the real estate mogul.
Grassley just said to “those who may have some doubts” about Trump that he had two words. “Those two words are: ‘Supreme Court,'” he said.
While introducing Walker, Kaufmann echoed those sentiments, citing the need to be a “family” no matter the times.
“We’re gonna be a family this week. We may not give a lot of hugs,” Kaufmann said. “Nobody says a family can’t be dysfunctional … We’re going to be a family this week.”
