Mike Pence: The Birther Issue Is Over

For over five years, his running mate Donald Trump fueled racist conspiracies that Obama was not born in the U.S.
Ready to move on from that whole birther thing.
Ready to move on from that whole birther thing.
Orlando Sentinel via Getty Images

The birther movement questioning President Barack Obama’s citizenship is not an issue any longer thanks to Donald Trump, according to Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R).

Trump’s running mate told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday that it’s been put to bed, “it’s over.”

Days earlier, Trump disavowed the conspiracy theory he’s propagated for nearly a decade, saying, “Obama was born in the United States, period.” But Trump kept another lie going, claiming once again that Hillary Clinton started the birther controversy ― another conspiracy theory that has been proven false repeatedly.

When asked Sunday why it took Trump so long to settle the issue, Pence blamed the media and Clinton’s campaign.

“Other than many in the national media, and certainly in Hillary Clinton’s campaign, as I campaign all across this country with Donald Trump and for Donald Trump, the American people aren’t focused on the debates of the past,” Pence said.

But when Trump had the opportunity to respond to the question of Obama’s birthplace on Wednesday, the presidential nominee said that he didn’t want to address it until later.

ABC correspondent Martha Raddatz pressed Pence further on Sunday, but couldn’t get a straight answer.

“Why did it take him so long to put it to an end?” Raddatz asked.

“It’s over,” Pence responded.

“It’s not over,” Raddatz continued. “Do you think he should have promoted this birther issue for all these years? Was he wrong to do this?”

“Our campaign just really isn’t focused on the past, Martha,” Pence said.

Editor’s note: Donald Trump regularlyincitespolitical violence and is a

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