Vice President Mike Pence held a "Make America Great Again!" rally at 4:30 p.m. Thursday at the Fort Wayne Aero Center. Pence was originally supposed to visit Indiana for some events and to vote on Oct. 9 but canceled his trip.
At this rally, Pence spoke to a socially distanced crowd, of which about half were wearing masks, about his and President Donald Trump’s accomplishments over the past three years and why people should vote for their ticket over that of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
Military and veterans
Pence said in response to budget cuts from the previous administration, Trump signed the largest investment for the U.S. military since the Ronald Reagan administration.
“We are finally giving our soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines and coast guard the support that they deserve,” Pence said.
Trump also worked to provide better benefits to U.S. veterans, Pence said. In accordance with reforms signed by Trump, all veterans have access to the Veterans Choice Program, which allows those eligible to receive health care from a community provider rather than from a veterans affairs facility.
Energy
Trump helped to end the war on coal, expanded energy production and helped the U.S. become a net exporter for energy, Pence said.
“We’re energy independent,” he said.
In contrast, Biden’s Green New Deal, which would cost about $2 trillion, would include the retrofitting, or addition of equipment that would reduce emissions, of about 4 million business buildings and would raise the cost of electricity in homes, Pence said.
He did not discuss the effect of Trump’s measures on the climate or mention climate change.
Law enforcement
Pence said he and Trump will continue to support police and law enforcement and he believes it is possible to both support Black people and “back the blue.”
“The men and women who serve in law enforcement across the state and nation are some of the best people in this country and they deserve the respect of every American every day,” Pence said.
He said Biden believes America is systemically racist and police had an implicit bias toward minorities and implied he does not share those beliefs.
While he and Trump support peaceful protests, Pence said he didn’t support the Black Lives Matter demonstrations that caused rioted to small businesses. He said that instead of exercising their right to free speech, these protesters rioted.
COVID-19
Regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, Trump is focused on developing and distributing a vaccine, providing help and protective equipment to health care providers and reopening the economy, Pence said.
“We’re going to keep working to slow the spread, to protect the vulnerable, to save lives,” he said. “And where Joe Biden is talking about shutting down our economy, we’re opening up America again.”
In about five months about 11.5 million Americans, including about 300,000 Hoosiers, have returned to work, Pence said.
Pence also said Trump’s early travel ban from China to America helped save lives and bought America time to develop a plan to fight the virus. He also once referred to the coronavirus as "the China virus".
The election
Pence said in between now and the election that people should vote, talk to others about what they heard at the rally and pray.
He also encouraged people to vote for other Republican candidates in addition to voting for him and Trump.
“We will make America great again, again,” Pence said.
