Trey Farley
tlf001@marietta.edu
On a night filled with “Trump digs coal” signs, loud eruptions of cheering, and rallying around his running mate, Republican Vice Presidential nominee Mike Pence held a rally at Marietta High School on Oct. 25. After processing through metal detectors and a few secret service agents, the event was kicked off with an invocation, a dance routine by Marietta High School’s dance team, and an introduction from State Representative Andy Thompson.
After the introduction was finished, the crowd of almost 500 burst out in cheers as Governor Pence vigorously took the stage.
Pence’s speech covered a wide range of topics and issues that have been discussed along the course of the presidential campaign. Pence discussed the issues facing his campaign that are brought on by their opponent, Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. At the very mention of the name Clinton, the crowd was filled with shouts of “lock her up” and “Clinton for prison.” That aside, the overall tone of Pence’s delivery was centered on rallying around his campaign partner, Presidential nominee Donald Trump.
Marietta College junior C.J. Cunningham said he thought Pence had an optimistic tone that kept the people engaged. “I thought Pence held the rally in a great manner” Cunningham said. “He was also able to keep the crowd very involved, I think having times of both cheers and boos kept the crowd more interested.”
Pence stressed that America needs a change from the status quo and that the team of Trump and Pence would bring the change that America needs and would “Make America Great Again.” He gave a detailed five-point plan that would take 100 days to complete that included renegotiating NAFTA, fixing the economy, ending Obamacare, and lobbying reform.
Pence also mentioned his love and support for the armed forces and first responders and how many prominent people in both of those groups have gave their support to Trump and Pence, including high ranking military personnel and the Fraternal Order of Police. These sentiments were met with a standing ovation from the crowd in honor of the men and women in uniform that were present. Pence even walked down to the front row to shake the hand of a veteran who had lost his legs fighting in Iraq.
While most people in the crowd were there to see a high profile candidate talk about what he and Trump can do to fix our problems, Marietta College junior Gene Charles was more impressed by Pence’s speaking skills.
“I thought he had a lot of interesting points and that he did a great job of expressing those ideas” Charles said.
Pence closed the evening with a rallying cry for voters to vote early and to encourage their neighbors and friends to get to the polls and vote for the candidate that would make the changes America needs. The Washington County Board of Elections is open from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, and all the way up to Election Day on November eighth.
