Elections

Trump VP pick Mike Pence: We want Americans to buy health coverage like car insurance

Gov. Pence: Get albatross of Obamacare off our economy
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Gov. Pence: Get albatross of Obamacare off our economy

Donald Trump's running mate, Republican Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, told CNBC on Friday their administration would repeal Obamacare and usher in a new way for Americans to buy health insurance.

"[We're] committed to allowing ... people to buy health insurance the way we buy life insurance, the way we buy car insurance," Pence said in a "Squawk Box" interview.

"That is across state lines in a competitive marketplace, not with the top-down government takeover of health care which is what Obamacare was from the very beginning," he said.

Trump wants to replace Obamacare with health savings accounts, a way to put tax-free money aside to pay for medical expenses.

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton plans to "defend and expand" Obamacare, adding the so-called public option or government-run health insurance offerings.

Pence also argued that Trump's outrage over his "stolen" tax records is justified, and it's not hypocritical to use the information contained in Clinton's emails.

Not all the Clinton emails were the result of WikiLeaks publishing hacked files, Pence said, adding some were brought to light by Freedom of Information Act requests.

"Many in the national media are buying into the argument from the other side that the issue here is where they came from, not what's in the emails," Pence said.

On the matter of AT&T's proposed $85 billion buyout of Time Warner, the GOP vice presidential nominee defended Trump's comments about being opposed to the deal.

"One of the things that's appealing about Donald Trump is that he speaks his mind; speaks it plainly," he said. "I think expressing skepticism on that [merger], as policymakers in Washington, D.C., evaluate that merger was more than appropriate."

Pence: Donald Trump's the boss and if we win, he'll make the calls
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Pence: Donald Trump's the boss and if we win, he'll make the calls

Responding to critics who say Trump would look to be a big picture president and delegate the day-to-day running of the country to his staff, Pence, who served six terms as a U.S. congressman, told CNBC the real estate billionaire would be the one to make the "play calls," if they were to win the White House.

While touting his accomplishments leading a state and crafting legislation in Washington, Pence talked about a pillar of Trump's plan to jump-start the economy.

"Trump wants to do, in part what we've done in Indiana but most especially what Ronald Reagan did back in the 1980s ... is cut taxes across the board," Pence said, including lowering the federal corporate tax rate to 15 percent from 35 percent.

In addition to Obamacare, Pence said a Trump administration would repeal every one of President Barack Obama's executive orders. He said those measures are "stifling American jobs."

"We're [also] going to have the trade deals that put the American people and the American economy first," he said. "We are never going to tackle a $20 trillion national debt unless we get this economy growing again."

Gov. Pence: 'Ten seconds of uncertainty'
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Gov. Pence: 'Ten seconds of uncertainty'

Pence also told CNBC he's "very thankful," after his campaign plane slid off the runway at LaGuardia Airport in New York on Thursday night.

"There was about 10 seconds of uncertainty. We landed. You could tell they were getting on the brakes pretty strongly. We slid," Pence said. "When the mud came up on the windows, we knew we were off the runway."

No one was injured.

"It seems like the first responders were there before the plane stopped rolling," said Pence, who was traveling from Iowa to a fundraiser at Trump Tower.

Meanwhile, new fundraising figures show the Trump-Pence ticket is way behind the money haul of Clinton, as next month's election approaches.

The Clinton campaign had about $62 million on hand as of Oct. 20, nearly four times Trump's $16 million, according to new Federal Election Commission data.

Trump is also trailing in nearly all national polls, with the Real Clear Politics average showing Clinton ahead by 4.5 percentage points. Most swing state polls also give the Democrat the advantage.