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Video: Fallin Calls Trump 'Racial Healer;' Still No Talks About Vice Presidential Nod

Gov. Mary Fallin responds to a question during an interview in Oklahoma City, Thursday, July 7, 2016. Fallin says she's had no direct contact with Donald Trump's presidential campaign about serving as his vice president.
Sue Ogrocki
/
AP
Gov. Mary Fallin responds to a question during an interview in Oklahoma City on Thursday. Fallin says she's had no direct contact with Donald Trump's presidential campaign about serving as his vice president, but is ready and willing to serve.

Gov. Mary Fallin says both Republican and Democratic presidential candidates, and anyone currently in public service, should relay a message of equal justice.

Fallin told CNN's Jake Tapper on Sunday’s State of the Union she believes Donald Trump is trying to campaign as a racial healer in the aftermath of violence last week in Louisiana, Minnesota, and Texas.

“He talked about how devastating this was for Dallas, how we need to respect our law enforcement, how we need to pray for those who were killed and those who are injured,” Fallin said. “I think that is his intent. I trust him with his words. And I think we all need to move towards being compassionate, loving, healing, but yet also respecting our law enforcement."

Fallin still says she's had no direct contact with Trump about serving as his vice president, according to Sean Murphy of the Associated Press. He interviewed the governor Thursday:

"I love America, and I'm willing to serve my nation," Fallin told The Associated Press in an interview last week. "And if I were to be asked to consider serving my nation in a capacity that would benefit the American people, I would certainly give it consideration. "But I have not been asked to do that."

Fallin has met with the presumptive Republican presidential nominee several times, most recently during a trip to New York with several other Republican governors. She declined to endorse a presidential candidate until U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Ohio Gov. John Kasich dropped out of the contest. Fallin says she doesn’t agree with Trump about everything, but they share many of the same goals.

"You're never going to find the perfect candidate that says things exactly the way you want to say them or have the exact positions that you feel," Fallin said. "But I share the same passion that Donald Trump shares, and that is to make sure that ISIS never comes to America again and that we protect our nation, that we have a strong national defense. I want to make sure every American that wants a job has a job and can find a job, and that our children get the very best education possible and have the opportunity to succeed."

Fallin left for Cleveland on Sunday because she serves as the national co-chair of the Republican Platform Committee, which is meeting Monday and Tuesday.

The 112 delegates on the committee will be charged with addressing proposed changes to the platform from subcommittees on the economy, national security, government reform, families, natural resources and constitutional law, Fallin said. "The platform itself is a very important historical document," Fallin said. "It's a blueprint of conservative ideals and principles that our party stands for, that will be useful in guiding voters to know what the Republican Party stands for, and it's certainly important for the presidential nominee or any other Republican running for office."

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Brian Hardzinski is from Flower Mound, Texas and a graduate of the University of Oklahoma. He began his career at KGOU as a student intern, joining KGOU full time in 2009 as Operations and Public Service Announcement Director. He began regularly hosting Morning Edition in 2014, and became the station's first Digital News Editor in 2015-16. Brian’s work at KGOU has been honored by Public Radio News Directors Incorporated (PRNDI), the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters, the Oklahoma Associated Press Broadcasters, and local and regional chapters of the Society of Professional Journalists. Brian enjoys competing in triathlons, distance running, playing tennis, and entertaining his rambunctious Boston Terrier, Bucky.
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