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November Surprises

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Trial Balloon · Ep. 192: November Surprises

‘Periods for Pence’ Targets Indiana Governor

· 63 Comments

New York Times: “One woman invited Gov. Mike Pence (R) to her gynecologist appointment. Another provided an update on her cramps. Another tweeted that she had just changed her tampon.”

“The social media missives directed to Indiana’s governor this week have been frequent, pointed and unyielding in their descriptions of female physiology. They are part of an unusual campaign on Facebook and Twitter to express outrage at a law that Mr. Pence, a Republican, signed last month that created several new restrictions on abortions.”

Indiana Governor Signs New Abortion Ban

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Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) “says he believes a bill banning women from getting abortions because of fetal genetic abnormalities such as Down syndrome affirms the value of all human life,” the AP reports.

“The Republican governor signed the contentious measure into law on Thursday, making Indiana the second state with such a ban.”

Pence Will Run for Re-Election

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Any speculation that Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) “would pass on a re-election bid following a highly contentious start to 2015 was extinguished Monday,” the Indianapolis Star reports.

The Indiana Republican Party issued a statement saying Pence would formally announce that he’d be seeking re-election in 2016 during the party’s Spring Dinner in June.

Gregg Will Challenge Pence for Indiana Governor

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John Gregg (D) “is running again for Indiana governor, this time with a stronger focus on Gov. Mike Pence’s (R) social issues, including the recent ‘religious freedom’ debacle,” the Indianapolis Star reports.

Said Gregg: “The governor had done what he said he wasn’t going to do. I thought he was going to focus on the economy, I thought he was going to focus on creating good paying jobs and improving our education system. He’s focused on nothing but social issues, which was his record in Congress, and those social issues do nothing but divide us.”

Pence Approval Sinks in Indiana

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A new Howey Politics Indiana poll finds Gov. Mike Pence’s approval rating has fallen to 45% — down from 62% in February.

The survey was less than a month “after Pence signed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, a law hailed as a reaffirmation of the First Amendment by supporters but derided as bigoted against gays and lesbians by critics.”

Huffington Post: Backlash against Pence continues

Mike Pence’s Presidential Ambitions Up in Smoke

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Politico: “Since Pence resigned as chairman of the House Republican Conference in November 2010 to run for governor, conventional wisdom held that he would bide his time in Indianapolis, padding his résumé with executive experience before mounting a presidential bid. After all, no one gets elected president from the House—American voters prefer governors, chief executives who have actually governed.”

“The working theory of a Pence bid, according to his allies, such as Kellyanne Conway, his longtime pollster, was somewhat Rube Goldbergian but plausible: If establishment and movement conservatives deadlocked in a primary, Pence could emerge as the consensus candidate. But when Pence signed the religious freedom bill into law last Thursday, that theory began to crumble.”

GOP Candidates Backed Into Corner Over Indiana Law

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Gov. Mike Pence (R) “just lobbed a grenade into the Republican presidential field,” Politico reports.

“The Indiana governor’s religious freedom law has ignited yet another controversial culture war debate that has Republican contenders juggling awkward questions about issues they would just as soon not touch.”

Washington Post: “Republicans had sought to avoid such disputes in 2016, but most top GOP presidential contenders quickly backed the bill, putting them out of step with growing national support for gay rights.”

Mike Pence, Then and Now

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“Congress should oppose any effort to recognize homosexual’s as a ‘discreet and insular minority’ entitled to the protection of anti-discrimination laws similar to those extended to women and ethnic minorities.”

— Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN), on his campaign website in 2000.

“I don’t support discrimination against anyone. I don’t support discrimination against gays and lesbians or anyone else. I abhor discrimination.”

— Gov. Mike Pence (R), quoted by the Indianapolis Star at a press conference addressing his controversial “religious freedom” law.

Fellow Governor Calls Pence a ‘Bigot’

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Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy (D) lashed out at Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) in an interview with MSNBC and called him “a bigot” for supporting a law he says allows discrimination against gays and lesbians.

Said Malloy: “When you see a bigot you have to call him on it.”

He added: “The reality is the governor’s not a stupid man, but he’s done stupid things. Signing this law and, quite frankly, promoting this law knowing exactly what it was going to do was an incredibly stupid thing for him to do.”

Pence Will Amend ‘Religious Freedom’ Law

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Embattled Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) took a second crack at trying to “clarify” his state’s controversial new “religious freedom” law, the Indianapolis Star reports.

Pence concluded “we’ve got a perception problem” and said “it will be helpful to move legislation this week to amend the law to make it clear that it does not give businesses the right to deny services to anyone.”

Brad Phillips: “The bottom line? If you have to call a press conference to clean up a bad media interview during the biggest political crisis of your career, you have a self-imposed media disaster on your hands.”

Wonk Wire has a good round up of views on the controversy.

Pence Digs In Over ‘Religious Freedom’ Law

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Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) dug in his heels, supporting the “religious freedom” legislation he just signed and refusing to support nondiscrimination protections, the Indianapolis Star reports.

“Pence struggled under persistent questioning from ABC’s George Stephanopoulos on Sunday morning as he went on air to defend the law… One thing Pence was clear about, however: He will not support language that would bar discrimination. The performance Sunday morning, on national television, marked an apparent about face from Saturday, when he told The Indianapolis Star that he would support new protections.”

Bloomberg quotes Pence: “We’ve been under an avalanche of intolerance and I’m not going to take it lying down. We’re not going to change the law.”

Wonk Wire: Why the outrage?

Pence Will Seek Clarification of Religious Freedom Law

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Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R), “scorched by a fast-spreading political firestorm,” told the Indianapolis Star that “he will support the introduction of legislation to ‘clarify’ that Indiana’s controversial Religious Freedom Restoration Act does not promote discrimination against gays and lesbians.”

Associated Press: “Hundreds of people, some carrying signs reading ‘no hate in our state,’ gathered Saturday outside the Indiana Statehouse for a boisterous rally against a new state law that opponents say could sanction discrimination against gay people.”

Religious Freedom Law Sparks Outrage in Indiana

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Indiana faces “a growing backlash over a religious-freedom law that has drawn a hostile reaction from defenders of gay rights, who say it could result in discrimination based on sexual orientation,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“Measures similar to that signed into law by Indiana Gov. Mike Pence this week are already in place at the federal level and in some 30 states. The law covers a relatively complex issue—setting a legal framework for those who claim a government rule or requirement is hampering their exercise of religion.”

The Indianapolis Star notes “the public firestorm has been fueled almost exclusively by critics — from gay rights activists to business leaders to celebrities— who see the law as a license to discriminate under the guise of religion. Oddly and conspicuously missing has been a strong counter-show of public support by the law’s backers, including evangelical Christians.”

Pence Looks Likely to Pass on Presidential Bid

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Tom LoBianco: “It will be at least two months until he announces it, but Gov. Mike Pence appears to have his sights set on a 2016 re-election bid, not a run at the White House.”

“Recently, Pence has ramped up his presence inside the Indiana Statehouse, while downplaying his trips outside the state. And he has become more hands-on around the Statehouse, especially after the criticism and even ridicule hurled at him over the proposed then scrapped “JustIN” state news site.”

Pence Still Mulling a White House Bid

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Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) “said he will not make a decision about whether to run for reelection to a second term in 2016 — or to get into the crowded GOP presidential field — until the end of April at the earliest,” Politico reports.

But he knows he can’t do both.

Said Pence: “Indiana law, in terms of a federal office and a state office, doesn’t permit that. I can tell you: I’m a very focused person. We’ll spend some time this spring deciding on where our focus should be, and that will be our focus.”

Pence Agrees to Expand Medicaid in Indiana

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“Indiana announced plans to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act after securing concessions from the Obama administration that could pave the way for other Republican-led states to widen health coverage for low-income residents,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“Gov. Mike Pence is the latest Republican to opt into the health law’s expansion of Medicaid despite his party’s opposition to the legislation. His move could prompt up to a half-dozen other GOP-led states to follow suit, including Florida, Tennessee and Alabama, by giving them a model to follow.”

Wonk Wire: Obamacare enrollment reaches new enrollment record

Pence Walks Back State-Run News Agency Idea

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Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) said he will soon be “clarifying” what his state-run news site will be doing soon and called reports on the plan an “understandable misunderstanding,” the Indianapolis Star reports.

“News of Pence’s plans for the news site exploded overnight after The Star broke the story late Monday. National media began asking if Pence’s news service would be similar state-run media in Russia and China.”

Taegan Goddard

Taegan Goddard

Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire -- which for more than two decades has been one of the nation's most influential political news sites.

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