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Trump introduces 'small-town boy' Mike Pence

Posted at 1:05 PM, Jul 16, 2016
and last updated 2016-07-16 14:22:07-04

NEW YORK -- Mike Pence's first speech as Donald Trump's vice presidential choice sounded a lot like his speeches as Indiana's governor. 

Pence introduced himself to Trump supporters as a "pretty basic guy." He offered himself as a difference to Trump's city-life upbringing.

"I'm really just a small-town boy," he said. "I grew up in southern Indiana -- with a big family and a cornfield in the backyard."

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In the Saturday morning event in New York City, Trump spoke for about 30 minutes before giving the podium to Pence.

Pence described himself, as he frequently does, as "a Christian, a conservative and a Republican, in that order." 

Trump tweeted just before 11 a.m. Friday that Pence would be his running mate. 

BLOG | #PenceWatch: Trump tweets that Pence is his guy

Trump and Pence complimented each other during their respective speeches, with Trump saying Pence is a man of "honor, character and honesty." Pence again invoked a Ronald Reagan comparison to Trump. 

"Donald Trump understands the frustrations and the hopes of the American people like no leader since Ronald Reagan," Pence said.

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Pence said he accepted the position as Trump's running mate for two reasons:

"First, I know that strong Republican leadership can bring about real change, just like we've seen in the Hoosier state." he said. "Secondly, because Hillary Clinton must never become President of the United States of America."

He confirmed he received the call from Trump on Wednesday.

During his speech, Trump also mentioned the fact that Pence endorsed Sen. Ted Cruz before the Indiana primary in May. 

"Governor Pence, under tremendous pressure from establishment people, endorsed somebody else," he said. "But it was more of an endorsement for me, if you remember. He talked about Trump, he talked about Ted - who's a good guy, by the way ... I said 'Who did he endorse?' It was the single greatest non-endorsement I've ever had in my life."

On the other side, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) bashed both Trump and Pence in a series of tweets before the speech.

Watch Pence's full acceptance speech in the video player above. 

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