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Vice President Pence Visits Cleveland To Sell GOP Tax Overhaul

Adrian Ma
/
ideastream
Vice President Mike Pence gave a half-hour speech at the InterContinental Hotel in Cleveland.

Vice President Mike Pence stopped in Cleveland on Friday to sell Ohioans on the benefits of the GOP tax overhaul.

"Jobs are coming back, confidence is back, and thanks to the great people of Ohio, America is back under President Donald Trump," Pence said during a half-hour speech at the InterContinental Hotel. 

The event was organized by a pro-Trump nonprofit called “America First Policies.” The group held several similar events in recent weeks, each with Pence as the keynote speaker. 

During the half-hour speech, Pence noted that since the tax cuts passed, several Ohio employers—such as Jergens, Inc., KeyCorp, and J.M. Smucker—have issued bonuses or raises to their workers.

He also connected the tax cuts to the stronger-than-expected February jobs report, in which the U.S. Labor Department reported a nationwide increase of 313,000 jobs last month.

Pence went on to praise the President for reducing federal regulations, imposing a steel tariff, and promised that Trump would deliver on another campaign promise: building a wall between the U.S. and Mexico.

"Make no mistake about it, we're going to build that wall," he said. The statement was greeted with a standing ovation by the crowd of about 200 attendees.

Following his speech, Pence left to attend a fundraising event for U.S. Rep. Steve Stivers. 

Adrian Ma is a business reporter and recovering law clerk for ideastream in Cleveland. Since making the switch from law to journalism, he's reported on how New York's helicopter tour industry is driving residents nuts, why competition is heating up among Ohio realtors, and the controlled-chaos of economist speed-dating. Previously, he was a producer at WNYC News. His work has also aired on NPR's Planet Money, and Marketplace. In 2017, the Association of Independents in Radio designated him a New Voices Scholar, an award recognizing new talent in public media. Some years ago, he worked in a ramen shop.