BERN TWP., Pa. -- Hundreds of supporters of President Trump gathered at Reading Regional Airport on Saturday to hear from Vice President Mike Pence.

It's the first time a sitting vice president has visited the county since 2002, when Dick Cheney appeared in Wyomissing.

Pence touched on the last four years and the strides, he said, he and the president have made since 2016, from invigorating the economy, the administration's handling of the coronavirus pandemic, and backing law enforcement.

"In a word, we made America great again," Pence told the audience.

"I'm both fiscally and socially conservative, so I'm definitely committed to voting for President Trump," said Julia Luesner. "I like a lot of what he stands for."

"We need to show support," said Tom Blose. "We need to show that we're behind them 100% and that this is what America wants. We don't want a radical left, socialist country. That's not what America is founded on."

 

Nearby, Biden-Harris supporters took their message on the road with a caravan to the airport.

"If you are a woman, if you are a person of color, if you are someone in the LGBT community, if you are a business owner, Trump does not care about you," said Alex Spangler.

"The people of Reading won't fall for empty gestures like a last minute drop-in from Vice President Pence," Reading Mayor Eddie Moran said in a statement. "Instead of containing the spread of COVID-19 and creating jobs in our region, the Trump-Pence Administration misled the American people about the severity of the pandemic."

Those in the caravan said a way to a better country is by turning Pennsylvania blue in November, but those in favor of red simply don't agree. For the Pugh family, conservative values should be taught at a young age.

"As long as we keep showing them the right thing and what we feel is best, then that gives them an early start, and it's something they're going to be aware of as they're growing up," Robert Pugh said.

It's those same American values, Pence said, that should drive voters to the polls.

"This is one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all," Pence said to the audience. "Please pray for America."

Pence will host another campaign rally in Harrisburg on Monday. Both parties have planned stops across the commonwealth leading up to Election Day on Nov. 3.

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