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Vice President Mike Pence made a stop in South Florida on Thursday to speak at a conference to discuss issues in Central America.

Pence, who was joined by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly, was speaking at the Conference on Prosperity and Security in Central America an event taking place on the campus of Florida International University.

In partnership with Mexico, the conference brought together leaders from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras.There are a variety of issues at stake, mostly concerning the economy and security.

"This president knows that your security and your prosperity are directly connected to ours," Pence said.

The Trump administration has been focusing on drug trafficking, gang violence and illegal migration in the northern triangle region of Central America.

"We stand with you in your commitment to stop the scourge of drug trafficking once and for all. And the United States of America stands with you as you build a more secure and prosperous future for the benefit of your people and the benefit of the Western Hemisphere," Pence said.

"A more prosperous and safer Central America will do much to halt the illegal and dangerous migration, defeat transnational drug cartels and gangs and end corruption in their economies," Tillerson said.

Pence also said he will be traveling to Central America later this year.

Security was tight for the conference, which came a day after the shooting in Alexandria, VA, where Rep. Steve Scalise, the House Majority Whip from Louisiana, was shot along with three other people including two members of Capitol Police.

Meanwhile, a group of protesters gathered for a demonstration as Pence arrived on the FIU campus. Many were mostly upset over what they say is the administration's aggressive stance on deporting undocumented immigrants.

"We're here to make a strong statement for immigrant rights because the Trump administration has policed and militarized the immigrant population," protester and FIU professor Ronald Cox said.

The visit from Pence came one day before President Donald Trump will arrive in Miami, where he is expected to make a major announcement regarding the U.S. and Cuba. Many expect Trump to roll back policies and actions from former President Barack Obama done in an effort to help thaw relations between the two nations.

The visits from both Trump and Pence are expected to have a major impact for those traveling in Miami-Dade County, as major roadways will be closed and transit service on both Metrorail and the Metromover could be stopped for as long as 30 minutes at a time.

Published at 6:11 AM EDT on Jun 15, 2017 | Updated at 6:27 PM EDT on Jun 15, 2017

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Vice President Mike Pence Speaks at Conference at FIU in Miami - NBC 6 South Florida

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Friday's Morning Email: Where Mike Pence And Jared Kushner Stand In The Russia Probe - HuffPost

Vice President Mike Pence has hired outside legal counsel to help with both congressional committee inquiries and the special counsel investigation into possible collusion between President Trumps campaign and Russia.

The vice presidents office said Thursday that Pence has retained Richard Cullen, a Richmond-based attorney and chairman ofMcGuire Woods who previously served as a U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia.

Pences decision comes less than a month afterTrump hired his own private attorney, Marc E. Kasowitz, to help navigate the investigations related to the Russia probe, and a day after the Washington Post reported that special counsel Robert S. Mueller III is now widening his investigationto examine whether the president attempted to obstruct justice.

I can confirm that the Vice President has retained Richard Cullen of McGuire Woods to assist him in responding to inquiries by the special counsel, said Jarrod Agen, a Pence spokesman, in an email statement. The Vice President is focused entirely on his duties and promoting the Presidents agenda and looks forward to a swift conclusion of this matter.

Cullen will not be paid with taxpayer funds, an aide said.Cullen referred questions to the vice presidents office.

The process of hiring a lawyer took several weeks and included interviews with several candidates, a Pence aide said. The vice president made his final decision earlier this week.

The vice presidents officesaid Pences decision to retain Cullen underscores his desire to fully cooperate with any inquiries related to the Russia probe, and is in line with what Trump has done in hiring Kasowitz.

Kasowitz has told some White House personnel that they dont need to hire their own lawyers, according to one person familiar with some of the legal discussions that have occurred inside the White House. But Pences move to hire an outside attorney could set off a scramble among other West Wing aides many of whom are already bracing for subpoenas to do the same, even if only as a protective measure.

Cullen, a former Virginia attorney general, served as the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia under President George H. W. Bush and worked on President George W. Bushs legal team during the Florida recount in the 2000 presidential election.

His other high-profile clients have included Tom DeLay, the former Republican majority leader who was investigated by the Department of Justice for his relationship with Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff; Elin Nordegren, the ex-wife of Tiger Woods, in her divorce from the golf star; and former senator Paul Trible (R-Va.), during the Iran-Contra investigation.

Trump and the White House have long maintained there was no collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russians and more recently denied that the president in any way tried to obstruct justice.

As Trumps No. 2 and as head of the transition team, Pence has increasingly found himself drawn into the widening Russia investigation. Michael Flynn, Trumps former national security adviser, originallymisled Pence about his contacts with Russian officials incorrect claims that Pence himself then repeatedly publicly. The vice president was kept in the dark for nearly two weeks about Flynns misstatements, before learning the truth in a Washington Post report.

Trump ultimately fired Flynn for misleading the vice president.

There were alsonews reports that Flynns lawyers had alerted Trumps transition team that Flynn was under federal investigation for his secret ties to the Turkish government as a paid lobbyist a claim the White House disputes. And aides to Pence, who was running the transition team, said the vice president was never informed of Flynns overseas work with Turkey, either.

The president has come under further scrutiny for his decision to fire FBI Director James B. Comey, a decision Trump later seemed to imply was related, in part, to the Russia probe that Comey was then overseeing. At the time, Pence along with Attorney General Jeff Sessions, senior adviser Jared Kushner, Chief of Staff Reince Priebus and Counsel Donald F. McGahnII was one of thesmall group of senior advisers the president consulted as he mulled his decision.

A sitting vice president choosing to hire an outside lawyer is not without precedent. Spiro T. Agnew, Richard Nixons vice president, retained outside counsel when he came under investigation for charges of extortion, tax fraud, bribery and conspiracy. He ultimately resigned from the vice presidency in 1973, after pleading no contest to tax evasion.

Vice President Al Gore also retained outside counsel in conjunction with an inquiry into his fundraising activities, including several telephone calls he made from his White House office soliciting Democratic campaign contributions. But he never hired a counsel during the investigation and subsequent impeachment of President Bill Clinton.

And Vice President Dick Cheney consultedTerrence ODonnell, a partner at Williams & Connolly, on several issues during his time in the Bush administration.

Devlin Barrett and Alice Crites contributed to this report.

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Pence hires outside counsel to deal with Russia probe inquiries - Washington Post

Next month, Vice President Mike Pence will speak at an event called Christians United for Israel. Its a group founded by Pastor John Hagee, a man who has a long history of saying indefensible things.

Five years ago, Hagee argued that atheists should leave the country if they didnt like the fact that this was a Christian nation:

Theyre saying that the 10 Commandments have been taken out of the courtrooms and out of the schoolhouses lest we offend the atheists. Let me be very clear. This country was not built for atheists nor by atheists. It was built by Christian people who believed in the word of God.

To the atheists watching this telecast: If our belief in God offends you, move! There are planes leaving every hour on the hour going every place on planet Earth. Get on one! We dont want you, and we wont miss you, I promise you

Hagee has also said people should stay away from Harry Potter books, Ouija boards, and rock music because theyre all leading you to Satan. He doesnt believe people who support abortion and LGBT rights can be True Christians

Oh. And then there was the time he claimed Hitler was a hunter whom God sent to force Jews to return to Israel.

Those who came founded Israel; those who did not went through the hell of the Holocaust, he added. Then god sent a hunter. A hunter is someone with a gun and he forces you. Hitler was a hunter.

None of those comments, however, went too far for Mike Pence. Hes still doing the event. And, really, we shouldnt be surprised. He was happy to remain Donald Trumps running mate even after Trump bragged about sexually assaulting women (on top of all the other horrible things hes said and done).

Pence doesnt give a damn about any of it. Because hypocrisy and bigotry only matter when non-Christians do it.

(via Right Wing Watch. Thanks to @JaneyTheSmall for the link)

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Mike Pence to Speak at Event Run By Pastor Who Wants Atheists To Leave the US - Patheos (blog)

Vice President Mike Pence will speak at Focus on the Family in Colorado Springs later this month as part of the organizations 40th anniversary celebrations, continuing his ongoing support of the groups fierce pro-life stance and work against policies supporting the LGBTQ community.

He plans to speak about a range of issues that affect families in the United States, Allison Meggers, a Focus on the Family spokeswoman, said of Pences June 23 visit.

Meggers said the event will be closed to the public due to limited seating, though members of the media will be allowed to attend. The Gazette was first to report the speech.

The views of Pence and Focus on the Family have long been aligned, with the organization backing him on various contentious social issues.

Recently, Focus on the Family came to Pences defensein March after a Washington Post profile of the vice presidents wife, Karen, noted how he refrains when his spouse is not there from eating dinner alone with another woman or attending an event with alcohol. The revelation drew outrage from womens groups.

A post on the Focus on the Family website supporting Pence was titled, Mike Pence Is Right to Keep Boundaries around His Marriage.

Focus on the Family also supported Pence in 2015 when the then-Indiana governor was taking fire for signing into law theReligious Freedom Restoration Act, which gave business owners the ability to cite their religious views as a reason to refuse service to gay and lesbian customers.

Vice President Mike Pence has been a tireless advocate for families throughout his service in government, Focus on the Family President Jim Daly said in a written statement. Were honored to have him join us in marking 40 years of saving marriages in crisis, equipping moms and dads to thrive as parents, speaking to crucial policy issues and creating a culture of life in our nation.

Focus on the Family began in 1977 and has spread its message through its radio program. It has a sprawling campus in north Colorado Springs, where it is headquartered.

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Mike Pence to speak at Focus on the Family event in Colorado ... - The Denver Post