Video: Vice President Pence Makes Phoenix Campaign Stop

PHOENIX — Vice President Mike Pence touched down in Phoenix Friday morning for his third Arizona visit ahead of the Nov. 3 election. Pence participated in two events, courting Latino and veteran voters in the battleground state.

Pence previously visited the Phoenix area on Aug. 11 to rally Latter-day Saints and law enforcement groups on behalf of President Donald Trump.

Air Force 2 touched down at Sky Harbor International Airport at 10:40 a.m. and Pence was greeted on the tarmac by Republican Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey. He also brought with him Dr. Deborah Birx, who was expected to meet with President Robert C. Robbins at the University of Arizona in Tucson to discuss how the school is handling the coronavirus pandemic.

The vice president then made his way to Grand Canyon University for a roundtable with The LIBRE Initiative in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month and to discuss Latino employment in the state. Ducey also sat on the panel, along Grand Canyon University President Brian Mueller and others.

There, the vice president said that Hispanic Americans had experienced record employment under the Trump administration prior to the start of the pandemic and stressed how important the Hispanic community is to the country's economy.

“Latinos need the free market, and the free market needs Latinos,” he said.

Pence then took the stage at a Veterans for Trump event at The Wigwam resort in Litchfield Park. Pence's son is a member of the Marine Corps and is stationed in Yuma and his speech started with reassurances that the Trump administration has made helping veterans a priority over the last four years.

"Under the president's leadership the VA is now providing mental health screenings to all veterans who walk through the door," he said. “Arizona and America need four more years of President Trump.”

Pence's appearance comes shortly after a story in The Atlantic, which cited four anonymous sources, alleged that President Trump has called military members "suckers" or "losers." Trump has made several comments about the late Arizona Sen. John McCain not being a war hero because he was captured.

Pence was due to return to Washington, D.C. following the veterans event but Air Force 2 made a pit stop in Yuma instead so the Pence family could visit with their son, Michael.

Pence's visit caps off a week of Trump administration officials courting votes in Arizona. The president was in Phoenix Monday to rally Latino voters. Ivanka Trump, the president's daughter and adviser, visited Phoenix Wednesday. Second Lady Karen Pence stumped for the campaign in the state Thursday.

Former Vice President Joe Biden, Trump's Democratic challenger, has said he will visit Arizona as well but his campaign yet to announce a date. His running mate, Sen. Kamala Harris of California, held a virtual roundtable with Arizona small business owners over the weekend.

Arizona is considered a battleground state in the Nov. 3 general election. Trump carried Arizona by 3.5 points in 2016 in his fight for the presidency. Recent polls show the president trailing Biden by as few as three points in Arizona as the Nov. 3 election approaches.