Pence says Trump will 'lead on the world stage'

Pence, the Republican vice presidential nominee, and running mate Donald Trump have both been in North Carolina numerous times in the last month, highlighting the state's importance to both the Trump camp and Democrat Hillary Clinton in the hotly contested general election.

Pence visited the city with Trump for a July 25 rally, held a town hall meeting in Raleigh on Aug. 4 and stopped at manufacturing plants in Charlotte and Brunswick County last week.

In his roughly 30-minute speech Tuesday night, Pence continually emphasized the fact that Trump will "lead on the world stage" and said the difference between Trump and Clinton is the difference between change and the status quo.

“We can choose a leader, a truth teller, a man who will stand strong on the American stage, and he will make America great again," Pence said.

Pence criticized Clinton and President Barack Obama for their "weak foreign policy" and called the Clinton Foundation a conflict of interest because of the connection between donations and private meetings with the State Department while Clinton was secretary of state.

“I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m starting to feel some Clinton corruption fatigue,” he said.

Key issues in the election focus on security and prosperity, Pence said, but he noted that the election will also shape the future of the Supreme Court, as the winner on Nov. 8 will ultimately appoint at least one justice.

“This election will probably define the Supreme Court of the United States for the next 40 years,” he said.

Trump has spoken strongly about plans for large deportations of undocumented people, but more recently, some have questioned whether he is backing off those ideas.

Trump is expected to talk about his immigration plans in a Wednesday speech and, in a one-on-one interview with WRAL News, Pence promised that Trump will "end the flood of illegal immigration" and build a wall to secure the border.

“I think what you’ll hear tomorrow night is a plan by Donald Trump that will be built on the overall goal of ending illegal immigration in the United States,” Pence said. “Whatever we do going forward will reflect the fair and tough approach that he’s described in the past, and it will reflect a humane approach, but make no mistake about it, that Donald Trump is committed to ensuring there’s no path to citizenship, no path to legalization. People that want to pursue that path will need to leave the country.”

Supporter Alicia Powers said that her vote will not change, no matter what Trump says Wednesday. She arrived seven hours before Pence spoke and said some changes to candidates' positions are to be expected.

"You would see a shift with anybody that was running with all the things going on right now," she said.