Mike Pence Campaign Speech Transcript Wisconsin August 19

Mike Pence: (00:25)
Well hello, Wisconsin. It is great to be back in the Badger State with some great Americans. Join me in thanking a dynamic, new, young voice in the United States House of Representatives who have been a great ally of this administration every single day, Congressman Bryan Steil, thank you for your great leadership. And to other members of Congress with us today, present and future. To all the great Americans who are gathered here today, it is wonderful to be back in Wisconsin. And I am honored to be here, especially with the men and women of this great community and men and women of a great American company right here on these grounds, you make the best products with the best materials, with the best workers, anywhere in the world. And you do it right here in the USA.

Mike Pence: (01:32)
Join me in thanking Tankcraft Corporation. Founded in 1986, this company has become one of the largest suppliers of tanks and the trucking industry in North America, and I couldn’t be more grateful for every single one of the men and women and the families that are represented here in this company. And I’m especially grateful for the leadership and the character and the generosity of purpose of their CEO, my friend, Bob Fettig, let’s hear it for Bob Fettig and all the team at Tankcraft.

Mike Pence: (02:16)
It really is great to be here with so many friends, I got to tell you. You all are a sight for sore eyes. Because I’ve been having to watch the Democrat National Convention the last two days. It’s good to be with so many friends, so many shining faces. And speaking of friends of mine, allow me to bring greetings from another friend of mine, a man who loves the state of Wisconsin and has been fighting for jobs, jobs, jobs for the Badger State since day one, I bring greetings from the 45th president of the United States of America, President Donald Trump. I know the president was in Wisconsin on Monday. His son, Eric was here yesterday and I’m here today. And I did hear the Democrats were supposed to have their national convention in Wisconsin, but they couldn’t make it. Of course that’s really nothing new. I heard on the way here that Joe Biden hasn’t actually been to Wisconsin in 659 days. In fact, the last time you saw a Democrat nominee for president in this Badger State was back in 2012. Well, I’m here to tell you, get used to seeing us, because president Donald Trump and I are going to be back to Wisconsin again and again to earn four more years in the White House. Four years ago, a movement was born, right here in Wisconsin and all across America. The movement of everyday Americans from every walk of life. Here in Wisconsin, you knew we could be strong again. You knew we could be prosperous again. You said yes to president Donald Trump in 2016. And I know Wisconsin’s going to say yes to four more years of president Donald Trump in 2020.

Mike Pence: (04:38)
It really is extraordinary when you think of the last three and a half years, I mean, truthfully, any way you slice it, it’s been three and a half years of action, three and a half years of results. It’s been three and a half years of promises made and promises kept. And it’s been three and a half years of jobs, jobs, jobs. It’s remarkable when you think about the record of this president. In the first three years of this administration, we had actually inherited a military that had been hollowed out by budget cuts under Barack Obama and Joe Biden. When we took office, I actually heard that there was a large number of aircraft in the United States Air Force that were grounded to be used as spare parts to keep other aircraft in the air.

Mike Pence: (05:39)
Well, I have to tell you, as the proud father of a United States Marine Corps aviator, and the father-in-law of a Naval aviator, I couldn’t be more proud To be vice president to a president that’s rebuilt our military. Has finally given our soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, and Coast Guard, the resources and the support that they deserve every single day. We’re doing it. And when we took office, we inherited the slowest economic recovery since the great depression. Joe Biden and Barack Obama had tried to tax and spend and regulate us back to a growing economy.

Mike Pence: (06:33)
By contrast, we cut taxes across the board for working families, businesses, large and small. This president has actually signed more bills, cutting federal red tape already than any president in American history. We unleashed American energy and we fought for free and fair trade that put American jobs and American workers first. And none of that would have been possible without the strong and principled support of conservatives that represent Wisconsin in Washington, D C.

Mike Pence: (07:10)
So let me take this opportunity again to thank Congressman Bryan Steil and also thank Congressman Glenn Grothman who’s with us today. Both of them have stood strong with us every step of the way. We need Bryan Steil and Glenn Grothman back in Washington, DC. And while you’re at it, we need Wisconsin to send a war hero, a Navy seal, a Wisconsin farmer to the House of Representatives, we need Derek Van Orden in the United States Congress. It really is amazing to think with the support of the people of Wisconsin in those first three years, reversing the policies of the last administration. This economy created more than 7 million good paying jobs. 2 million Americans were lifted out of poverty and 7 million Americans were able to leave food stamps and pursue a better life.

Mike Pence: (08:13)
And then the worst pandemic in a hundred years struck America. But from early in this pandemic, the American people saw the leadership of this president shine forth. From before there was a single case of community transmission of coronavirus in the United States, President Donald Trump suspended all travel to the United States from China, stood up a task force and said, “We’re going to put the health of America first.”

Mike Pence: (08:53)
He did it. The president marshaled not just the whole of government response, but the whole of America response. We reinvented testing. And now we’ve done more than 70 million coronavirus tests virtually from a standing start in late February, more than any nation in the world by far. We arranged for the delivery of hundreds of millions, of medical supplies to our hospitals and our extraordinary healthcare workers, doctors, and nurses that saved lives across this country.

Mike Pence: (09:23)
We passed relief legislation for American families and businesses to weather the crisis. And I’m told that nearly one million Wisconsin jobs were retained thanks to the Paycheck Protection Program alone. And as of June, as our economy is beginning to come back, 93% of the total number of employed people in Wisconsin before the pandemic were back to work. We’ve been developing therapeutics at a record pace, and I’m here to tell you, I just got another report yesterday from the-

Mike Pence: (10:03)
And I’m here to tell you, I just got another report yesterday from the White House taskforce doctors. We are well on our way to having the first Coronavirus vaccine before the end of this year. Only in America, only in America could we respond the way we did.

Mike Pence: (10:19)
Men and women. That’s what leadership looks like. That’s the leadership of President Donald Trump.

Mike Pence: (10:28)
Now we have a ways to go. We have a ways to go. But we’re encouraged by the progress that you’ve made here in the Badger State and the people who made all across the country, putting the health of their families and their neighbors and their community first. We all have a role to play, to protect the vulnerable, to save lives. And our hearts are with the more than 170,000 families that lost loved ones in this pandemic. But our hearts of gratitude are also with all the amazing first responders, doctors, nurses, and healthcare workers who have stepped into this fight from day one. They’ve been heroes for the American people and they have our admiration and our thanks.

Mike Pence: (11:18)
America’s coming back. It’s amazing to think at the height of the pandemic, we had lost 22 million jobs in this economy, but because of the solid foundation that we poured in those first three years, the American comeback has begun. In May and June, our economy saw the two largest one month increases in jobs in American history. We’ve actually already added more than 9 million jobs back to the American economy. We’ve added more jobs back to this economy in three months than Joe Biden and Barack Obama added to our economy in eight years.

Mike Pence: (11:59)
That’s true. And American manufacturers, just like Tankcraft have been leading the way. American manufacturing expanded in July for the third month in a row. Wisconsin’s economy is coming back. And as President Trump said on Monday, we’re witnessing the fastest economic recovery in the history of our country. In fact, the stock market, NASDAQ and the S&P 500 just hit another record. Men and women of Wisconsin, the great American comeback is on.

Mike Pence: (12:40)
We’re opening up again. We’re opening up safely and responsibly. And as we open up America, we’re opening up America’s schools and we’re getting our kids back into the classroom. And I’ll make you a promise, as America continues to contend with this pandemic, we’re not going to rest. We will not relent until that good day comes that we put this Coronavirus in the past and we bring Wisconsin and America back bigger and better than ever before.

Mike Pence: (13:21)
But to do that, we all need to do our parts and put the health of our neighbors and our loved ones first. But I’ll also tell you, to bring America’s economy all the way back, we don’t need Joe Biden’s agenda of higher taxes and more regulation. We need four more years of President Donald Trump in the White House. My fellow Americans, we all know we’re passing through a time of testing in this country, but soon we’ll come to a time for choosing. The choice in this election has never been clearer. The stakes have never been higher. And today I want to talk to you about what’s at stake, the choice our nation faces. I want to talk about American jobs in manufacturing and keeping faith with all the principles and the ideals that have always made America great. But make no mistake about it, our economic recovery is on the ballot, but there are also things more fundamental and more foundational to our country as well. The choice in this election is not whether America will be more conservative or more liberal, more Republican or more Democrat, more red or more blue. I believe that choice in this election is whether America remains America. It’s whether we will leave to our children and our grandchildren a country grounded on our highest ideals of freedom, free markets, the inalienable right to life and Liberty, or whether we will leave to our children and grandchildren a country that’s fundamentally transformed into something else. We stand at a crossroads of freedom. Before us lie two paths, but I know the people of Wisconsin and America are going to choose the path of freedom and opportunity. We’re going to choose to reelect President Donald Trump for four more years.

Mike Pence: (15:58)
The truth is Joe Biden and Kamala Harris would set America on a path of socialism and decline. Bernie Sanders said it himself at the Democratic Convention this week. He said, and I quote, “Many of the ideas we fought for that just a few years ago were considered radical are now mainstream.” It’s amazing, but not surprising when you look at their agenda. In the midst of a global pandemic, Joe Biden would raise taxes by $4 trillion. That’s more than twice the tax increase that Hillary Clinton ever proposed. By contrast, President Donald Trump signed the largest tax cuts and tax reform in American history and we’re going to keep bringing tax relief to working families.

Mike Pence: (16:57)
Joe Biden would bury this economy under an avalanche of red tape regulation and bureaucracy. This President, as I said before, has cut more federal red tape than any President in American history. With Joe Biden, they have a plan for a $2 trillion version of the Green New Deal. Joe Biden says that he wants to abolish fossil fuels. He’d rejoin the Paris Climate Accord. Well, President Trump got us out of the Paris Climate Accord. We pursued an all of the above energy strategy and now we’re a net exporter of energy for the first time in 75 years.

Mike Pence: (17:42)
But it’s not just about their economic agenda, it’s about our security and the people of Wisconsin and all across this Heartland know that public safety is the foundation of our prosperity. That’s why President Donald Trump has stood with the men and women of law enforcement every single day.

Mike Pence: (18:15)
President Trump and I know the men and women who put on the uniform of law enforcement are the very best people in this country. And with this President, this administration, we will always back the blue.

Mike Pence: (18:42)
And it’s never been more important. We stand here today, not far from the city where my parents grew up, great city of Chicago. We learned that this past weekend alone, 52 people were shot, including six teenagers and a 12 year old boy, but in city after city, Chicago, New York, Portland, Seattle, we see crime rates rising, violent crime rising, murder rates rising. And in city after city, it’s where local officials are stepping away from support for law enforcement. The city of Minneapolis actually announced plans to dismantle their police department. The mayor of New York City announced a billion dollar cut in the NYPD. Joe Biden said he believes that America is systemically racist. And he went on to say that law enforcement has an implicit bias against minorities. And when Joe Biden was asked whether he would cut funding to law enforcement-

Mike Pence: (20:03)
And when Joe Biden was asked whether he would cut funding to law enforcement, he said and I quote, “Yes. Absolutely.” Well let me make you a promise. Under this president, this vice president and this administration, we’re not going to defund the police, not now, not ever.

Mike Pence: (20:40)
You know despite what Joe Biden and the radical left think, the American people know law enforcement isn’t the problem. Law enforcement is the solution. Let’s be clear, my uncle was a cop in Chicago for 25 years. Nobody hates bad cops more than good cops. But Democrats out there seem to want us to think that we got to make a choice between supporting law enforcement and supporting families in our African-American and other minority communities in our cities. The truth is the right choice is to do both, and under this president, we’re going to support law enforcement and improve public safety for every family in our cities, African-American, Latino-American. We’re going to fight for public safety for every American regardless of race or creed or color.

Mike Pence: (21:50)
So it’s about security. It’s about prosperity. It’s about the rule of law, and when it comes to the rule of law, we all know that Joe Biden will be appointing activist judges to our courts that will legislate again from the bench. By contrast, President Donald Trump has already appointed more than 200 federal judges to our courts at every level and I can tell you, they are all principled conservatives who will uphold the God-given liberties in our Constitution, like the freedom of religion, the freedom of speech, and the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. I couldn’t be more proud to be vice president with a president who stands without apology for the sanctity of human life. President Donald Trump is the most pro-life president in American history.

Mike Pence: (23:11)
When it comes to protecting jobs and opportunities here in the Badger State, you know you got a fighter in this president. The truth is Joe Biden and the radical left are deeply out of step with the people of Wisconsin on every issue that matters. Prosperity or security, and that’s nowhere more evident than in the way this president has fought for American jobs and American workers. The trade deals that Joe Biden supported in his four decades in Washington cost jobs here in Wisconsin, but this president knew from day one that when the playing field is level, American workers can compete and win against workers and businesses anywhere in the world.

Mike Pence: (24:19)
That’s why since the first day of this administration, this president and our entire team have been fighting for free, fair and what the president calls reciprocal trade with nations around the world and we made great progress renegotiating a trading relation with South Korea and Japan and this president from day one put China on notice and said the era of economic surrender is over.

Mike Pence: (24:54)
He stood strong against China but also closer to home. After years of lost jobs, lost manufacturing jobs that went south of the border here in Wisconsin, back in my home state of Indiana, I’m proud to report to you, NAFTA is history and the USMCA is here to stay. It’s a win. The USMCA preserves manufacturing companies like [Tancrafts 00:25:26] duty free access to Canada and Mexico. It simplifies the export process, it saves the company time and money that can be used to create jobs and grow this business right here in Wisconsin. President Trump’s going to keep fighting for free and fair trade every single day that always puts American workers first. But you all deserve to know, Joe Biden actually mocked the idea that China was an economic threat to our country. He said not long ago that China was “not competition”. I mean when we took office half of our international trade deficit was with China and Joe Biden said “not competition”. His new running mate was one of only ten senators to vote against the USMCA. Well you all know here, the workers of Wisconsin deserve better. American workers deserve better. That’s why we’re going to reject the liberal trade agenda of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris and we’re going to re-elect President Donald Trump for four more years.

Mike Pence: (26:50)
Back when I was governor of the Hoosier State, I remember when Joe Biden and Barack Obama were in the White House. We were always told that the best days for manufacturing were in the past. Remember that? They got to call on our part of the country the Rust Belt and the truth is under Joe Biden and Barack Obama, America lost 200,000 manufacturing jobs. I’ll never forget the summer of that campaign in 2016. President Obama actually said those jobs would never be coming back, he said, “What magic wand do you have?” Well we didn’t need a magic wand to knock the rust off the Rust Belt. We just needed President Donald Trump in the White House. 500,000 manufacturing jobs created in just three years. That includes 39,000 manufacturing jobs right here in the Badger State. It’s incredible. American manufacturing is coming roaring back. It’s because we have a president that knows that when you let people keep more of what they earn and you create relief for businesses from taxes and red tape and you fight for free and fair trade, when you fight for low cost energy, America just comes roaring back. The American people, the American people get it. They understand it.

Mike Pence: (28:26)
So I’m here to tell all of you for America’s strength, for our security, for jobs, for law and order, for life and our liberties, we got to decide right here and right now that Joe Biden will never be President of the United States. We’re going to re-elect President Donald Trump for four more years. It’s on, Wisconsin. It’s on, so get ready. Buckle up. 76 days left to Election Day. I like that number, 76. Freedom wins on 76. But we need you. We need you to do just what you did in 2016 and every day since. We need you to talk to your neighbors and friends. We need to let your voice be heard, all across this state and all across this nation. Wisconsin saw the leadership quality and the vision of the man that would become our president and I know the people of Wisconsin understand –

Mike Pence: (30:03)
… our president. And I know the people of Wisconsin understand just how important this election is today. You know, my wife Karen is a school teacher. She actually is a art teacher at a little Christian school. She’s back there today putting together art supplies because they’re going back to school next week. But her favorite poem is by Robert Frost. It speaks about two roads. “Two roads diverge in a woods. And I, I took the road less traveled by,” he wrote. And it made all the difference.

Mike Pence: (30:48)
The truth is Americans have always taken the road less traveled by, the road of socialism, big government, decline, that’s the well worn path that most of the world has trodden throughout the modern era. But here in America, we’ve chosen the road of freedom, free markets, individual responsibility, life, and God given liberties. And so we got to lay that choice out. So I want you to bring your enthusiasm. Post on Instagram, tweet, call your neighbors and friends. Talk to them at worship and work. Say, “I ran into Mike the other day at Tank Craft.” And say, “That guy got up there and talked for like a half hour, just giving a summary of the choice that we face and everything we have accomplished and everything we can still accomplish for this country.” Lay out that choice. I’m absolutely convinced, studying the long history of this country, every time the American people are given a choice between more freedom and more government, the American people choose freedom every time. So let’s take freedom to the people of Wisconsin.

Mike Pence: (32:20)
We’re going to bring this country back. We’re going to build an American future, all the ideals and values that have always made this country great. And as we open up again, as we bring our nation back, I encourage you to reflect on those ideals and those values. It really is, it’s a choice between whether you have faith in America and everything that America has been built on in our relentless drive toward a more perfect union, or whether you want to place your faith in something else, in the judgment of others. The truth is, Joe Biden, the Democratic Party have been overtaken by the radical left and their agenda would take this country in a dramatically different direction, on an inexorable path towards socialism and decline. And President Trump and I, with your support, will continue to lead this country on the path of freedom, free markets, liberties, and life. And we will do it with the strength of the American people at our back because we have faith in America.

Mike Pence: (33:50)
And finally, if you’re inclined to bow the head and bend the knee from time to time over the next 76 days, I encourage you to do that too. I mean, it seems even before this year arrived with the great challenges we faced in the coronavirus pandemic, it seemed that there was more that divided this country than had ever united us in my lifetime. What’s clear to me traveling all across this nation as your vice president over the last three and a half years is that there will always be more that unites us in these United States than could ever divide us. And chief among those things is faith because America is a nation of faith.

Mike Pence: (34:43)
And so I encourage you in the days ahead, pray for America, pray for all the people of America, because I truly believe in this time of great choice and great challenge, I still believe those ancient words are true. “If his people who are called by his name will humble themselves and pray, he’ll do like he’s always done through the long and storied history of this country. He’ll hear from heaven and he’ll heal this land, this one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” So pray for America in these 76 days. It will make a difference.

Mike Pence: (35:38)
So thank you all for coming out. Thank you for the enthusiastic welcome. It is great to be in the Badger state and I sure do hope you get used to seeing us. Where the other side’s online, we’re going to be on the streets in the Badger state taking this message. And I’m absolutely convinced if all of us do all that we need to do between now and November 3rd, with your support, your voice, and with your prayers, we’re going to reelect this president for four more years. We’re going to reelect great congressmen like Brian Steil and Glenn Grossman. We’re going to send Derrick Van Orden to the House of Representatives. And with President Donald Trump in the White House for four more years, Wisconsin, we’re going to make America great again. Again. Thank you all very much. God bless you and God bless America.