The Latest: Pence says Trump to lead ethical administration
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - The Latest on Mike Pence in the U.S. presidential race (all times EDT):
7:00 p.m.
Mike Pence is campaigning on the idea that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump would run a more ethical administration than Hillary Clinton.
The Republican vice presidential nominee told North Carolina supporters Tuesday that the Wikileaks hack of John Podesta's emails confirms "an avalanche of scandals" and "pay-to-play politics" in Clinton's world.
Trump has proposed barring anyone from federal lobbying activity within five years after leaving a congressional seat, a congressional member's staff or an executive branch post.
Trump also added a call for term limits on members of Congress. Pence didn't discuss that detail in North Carolina. He was a House member for 12 years.
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5:23 p.m.
Mike Pence is joining Donald Trump in relentlessly hammering the national media coverage of the presidential race.
The Republican vice presidential candidate told supporters Tuesday in Wilmington, North Carolina, that the election is not "exactly a fair fight" because "the media out there is doing half of Hillary Clinton's work for her every day."
Pence said the media is busy "chasing other stories" besides controversies surrounding the Democratic nominee. The Indiana governor went on to quote from a front-page USA Today story detailing "the nexus among private companies, Hillary Clinton's State Department and the Clinton Family Foundation."
The Indiana governor then cited ABC News reporting suggesting Hillary Clinton's State Department aides in 2010 played favorites with vendors and other entities during recovery efforts for a Haiti earthquake. The story cited emails showing aides concerned with identifying groups close to former President Bill Clinton.
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2:50 p.m.
Republican vice presidential candidate Mike Pence is struggling to defend his running mate's assertions that the Nov. 8 election will be "rigged."
Pence once again said that Donald Trump was talking about biased media. The Indiana governor was speaking to reporters Tuesday in Hillsborough, North Carolina.
But reporters noted that Trump has made frequent, though unsubstantiated, claims that there will be widespread voter fraud. Pence responded that there have been documented instances of voter fraud in the past. He suggested that Trump is only encouraging his supporters to "respectfully participate" at the polls "to ensure the integrity of the election."
Pence did not directly answer when asked whether the Trump campaign wants more than the longstanding tradition of having poll watchers from the Democratic and Republican parties at every precinct.
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2:15 p.m.
Republican vice presidential candidate Mike Pence is condemning the firebombing of a local Republican office in North Carolina as "an act of political terrorism" and "an attack on the American political system."
The Indiana governor on Tuesday toured the charred interior of the Orange County GOP office on his way to two rallies elsewhere in the state.
He praised Republican volunteers Hillsborough, North Carolina, for their "courage and resilience."
Pence noted political figures across the spectrum have condemned the act committed over the weekend. But he complained that national media have paid little attention. He speculated that a similar attack on a Democratic office would get much wider coverage.
No one was hurt, and police are still investigating.
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1:40 p.m.
Republican vice presidential nominee Mike Pence is visiting a local North Carolina Republican Party office that was damaged by a firebomb.
The Indiana governor is meeting Tuesday with local Orange County Republicans ahead of two rallies elsewhere in North Carolina.
North Carolina has emerged as key battleground and is a must-win state for Republican Donald Trump.
No one was injured in the bombing last weekend. Police are still investigating. Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton have condemned the attack.
Orange County is a heavily Democratic county at the edge of the Raleigh-Durham metro area. President Barack Obama won 70 percent of the vote there in 2012, though he lost the statewide vote.
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11:35 a.m.
Republican vice presidential nominee Mike Pence is using campaign stops in battleground North Carolina to aid recovery efforts after Hurricane Matthew battered the state's southeast quadrant.
Aides said the Indiana governor is bringing bulk canned food and other items to his Tuesday afternoon rally in Wilmington. The city was in the storm's direct path. Supporters attending an evening rally in Fayetteville are being asked to bring non-perishable food items, as well.
Pence's visit to the state comes two days after a local Republican Party office in Orange County, North Carolina, was damaged by a Molotov cocktail thrown through a window. No one was in the office at the time. Local Republicans resumed operations Monday outside their damaged office.
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5:40 a.m.
Campaign events by Mike Pence in eastern North Carolina begin three days of visits by vice presidential candidates leading to the start of early in-person voting in the battleground state.
Pence was scheduled to participate in two rallies Tuesday - one in Wilmington in the afternoon and another in Fayetteville in the evening. The Wilmington rally for the Republican nominee is set for a conference center along the Cape Fear River, with the Fayetteville event at a veteran-owned defense contracting business.
Democratic nominee Tim Kaine is expected to campaign with the state Democratic Party both on Wednesday and on Thursday, when early voting begins. Wednesday's early-vote event is in Asheville, with Thursday rallies slated for Charlotte and Durham.