Trump snatches credit for Pence's strong debate The Republican nominee wrenches back the spotlight after his running mate delivers a superior showing.

Donald Trump reminded everyone who’s the man at the top of the ticket Wednesday, reclaiming the political spotlight from his running mate, who delivered a steadier and more commanding performance on the debate stage than the reality TV star.

The Republican presidential nominee boasted to supporters that he’s “getting a lot of credit” for Mike Pence’s strong showing versus Hillary Clinton’s running mate, Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine, in Tuesday’s first and only vice presidential face-off.


Indeed, while Clinton’s camp pounced on the Indiana governor for his repeated refusal to defend his running mate, Pence was widely praised for parrying Kaine’s punches.

Trump uncharacteristically gushed over Pence — only to later bolster the case for their election by highlighting Pence’s triumph as a product of Trump’s own success. After all, he insisted, Pence couldn’t have performed so well had Trump not used his superior judgment to add him to the ticket.

“How many of you watched the vice presidential debate last night?” Trump asked during his rally in Henderson, Nevada. “Mike Pence did an incredible job, and I’m getting a lot of credit because that’s really my first so-called choice. That was my first hire, as we would say in Las Vegas.”

And it was “a good one,” Trump added, going on to extol the Indiana governor by describing his performance with terms like “phenomenal,” “cool,” and “smart.”

“He was — I mean, you just take a look at him — he was meant to be doing what he’s doing and we are very, very proud of Gov. Mike Pence,” he said.

Trump perhaps got the most credit from Pence himself, who told supporters during his own rally in Harrisonburg, Virginia, earlier Wednesday that it was Trump and his vision that won the debate.

“Some people think I won,” Pence said, sending the crowd into a roar. “But I’ll leave that to others. You know, what I can tell you is from where I sat, Donald Trump won the debate. Donald Trump’s vision to make America great again won the debate. And when we take that vision to every corner of Virginia and every corner of this great nation, this movement, that man and that vision are gonna win all the way to the White House.”

In Nevada, Trump paused to verbally thank Pence before continuing to celebrate his No. 2’s performance. “I’d argue that Mike had the single most decisive victory in the history of vice presidential debates,” Trump declared. “I believe that, too.”

But he didn’t leave it there. He pat himself on the back for his decision-making prowess.

“And last night, America also got to look firsthand at my judgment,” Trump continued. “And that was judgment. You know, you need judgment for people, for deals.”

Reports had suggested Trump was unhappy that Pence upstaged him and didn’t defend him in Tuesday’s bout, a notion his campaign manager dismissed as “just not true.”

Publicly, though, Trump has continued to laud the VP nominee. “Mike Pence won big. We should all be proud of Mike!” Trump tweeted after the debate.

He followed up with another post around 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, panning Kaine’s performance and reminding everyone who won.

“The constant interruptions last night by Tim Kaine should not have been allowed,” said Trump, who was also criticized for constantly interrupting Clinton during his subpar presidential debate performance last week. “Mike Pence won big!”

At the end of the day, though, it’s whether Trump wins that matters — likely in the next debate this Sunday and especially in November.

“If I don’t win, this will be the greatest waste of time, money and energy in my lifetime, by a factor of 100,” he said.

Trump largely self-funded his campaign during the primary, injecting nearly $50 million into his presidential run. He also boasts about his rigorous campaign schedule as he blasts Clinton over what he maintains is a lack of stamina and energy. But he explained to supporters that his campaign would be such a waste because his supporters will be unable to change the status quo if Clinton is elected.

“If we don’t win, we can’t change things,” he warned. “We can’t bring back common sense. We can’t strengthen our military, which is so depleted. We can’t save our Second Amendment. So many different things. So we have to win. We have to win.”