WASHINGTON (AP) – Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has bragged he could get a $1 billion campaign loan simply walking into a bank. But his new running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, is far less wealthy, and once faced scrutiny for using campaign funds to pay his bills.
When Pence left Congress to become Indiana’s governor in early 2013, he and his wife’s net worth, excluding the value of their Indiana home, was less than $300,000.
Personal financial matters nearly ended Pence’s political career before it even began. In 1990, while running for Congress, Pence used campaign contributions to pay for personal expenses, including his mortgage, his wife’s car payment, a personal credit card, parking tickets and golf greens fees.
As U.S. vice president, Pence would earn more than $230,000 per year.