In Pence, Trump taps even-keeled Hoosier with conservative credentials
WASHINGTON _ Donald Trump's choice of Indiana Gov. Mike Pence provides the ticket with solid conservative credentials, a dash of establishment respectability and an experienced hand who knows his way around Capitol Hill.
Perhaps more than anything, the telegenic, media-savvy Pence, 57, adds some ice to Trump's fiery bombast on the campaign trail, something that many nervous mainstream Republicans have been begging for.
"He's a very low-key, get-it-done type of guy," said Rep. Lou Barletta, R-Pa., a Trump supporter who served with Pence for two years in the House of Representatives. "Opposites attract, different styles. You need different styles to motivate different types of personalities. ... He's got a lot of relationships here and a lot of people like him."
One of Pence's favorite sayings is "I'm a conservative, but I'm not angry about it," and he even described himself as a "Rush Limbaugh on decaf" during a stint as a conservative talk radio show host in the 1990s. That even-tempered attitude helped him morph from a bomb-throwing conservative House member to "someone who could legislate," said former Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., a moderate who served with Pence in the House.
"He had to adjust to the reality of congressional coalitions, and he did," Davis said.
_ McClatchy Washington Bureau
