INDIANAPOLIS -- Gov. Mike Pence wasn't exactly in lockstep Friday night with running mate Donald Trump's proposed ban on Muslim immigrants – but in his first interview as Trump's VP pick, he seemed a far cry from his repudiation of it last year.
"Calls to ban Muslims from entering the U.S. are offensive and unconstitutional." That was Pence on Twitter in December after Trump proposed a "total and complete shutdown" of Muslims entering the U.S.
Calls to ban Muslims from entering the U.S. are offensive and unconstitutional.
— Governor Mike Pence (@GovPenceIN) December 8, 2015
But in a Friday night interview with Fox News' Sean Hannity, Pence took a notably different tone.
"I am very supportive of Donald Trump's call to temporarily suspend immigration from countries where terrorist influence and impact represents a threat to the United States," Pence said.
#PenceWatch coverage | Trump tweets that Pence is his guy | CNN: Trump tried to get out of choosing Pence late Thursday | Clinton swiftly launches attack ad against Pence | Pence is out; what's next for Indiana governor's race?
Pence himself attempted to prevent Syrian refugees from resettling in Indiana – a proposal that a federal judge later called "utterly ineffective" and "unconstitutional discrimination."
MORE | Judge: Gov. Pence can't stop refugee resettlement
Pence told Hannity he's been willing to criticize other Republicans in the past when he disagreed with them, but didn't repeat his criticisms of Trump's Muslim ban.
Instead, the governor offered up a line from the Trump playbook: "We've got to do something different, and we've got to put the safety and security of the American people first."
Pence was less equivocal on another of Trump's signature policy proposals: a 2,000-mile wall along the Mexican border.
The governor told Hannity he was "absolutely" behind the wall, and that Mexico would "absolutely" pay for it.
Tonight Pence said he is "absolutely" in synch with Trump on the wall, Mexico is "absolutely" going to pay for it
— Ines de La Cuetara (@InesdLC) July 16, 2016
A "welcome home" rally for Pence was scheduled for Saturday afternoon at the Indianapolis Executive Airport in Zionsville, Indiana.
