WASHINGTON _ Republican vice presidential nominee Mike Pence had the tough assignment Friday morning of responding to Michelle Obama's emotional rebuke of Donald Trump's behavior toward women.
Pence treaded carefully as he sought during an interview on CBS to cast doubt on the address by Obama, a Hillary Clinton surrogate who is immensely popular with the electorate and has connected with female voters more effectively than Clinton herself.
"I have a lot of respect for the first lady and the job that she's done for the American people over the last 7 { years," Pence said. "But I don't understand the basis of her claim."
The Indiana governor said he believes Donald Trump's denial of all the recent accusations of groping and kissing women against their will.
"I do believe him," Pence said. "When these latest unsubstantiated allegations came forward, he's categorically denied them."
Pence alluded, as Trump did on Thursday, to "evidence" that will support Trump as he struggles to answer all the charges of his accusers.
"Well, just stay tuned," Pence said. "I know that there's more information's going to be coming out that'll back his claim that this is all categorically false. ... We're simply not going to allow the slander and lies emerging from the Clinton political machine and being propagated in the media to distract attention from the real issues affecting the American people."
Pence was vague about when the "evidence" would be presented. But he offered a more concrete timetable than Trump has offered for releasing his tax returns, another piece of information the campaign said it would release at some unspecified point.
"Frankly I think even before the day is out, there'll be more evidence publicly that shows and calls into question these latest allegations," Pence said.
