MARINETTE (NBC26 and AP) -- Vice President Mike Pence has canceled one of two stops he had scheduled in the presidential battleground state of Wisconsin.
Pence on Wednesday was scheduled to tour and speak at a shipbuilder in Marinette. But he canceled that appearance hours before he was to arrive. Instead, he is staying in Washington to be with President Donald Trump for remarks he plans to make about Syria.
"We were informed his presence was needed in Washington D.C. and unfortunately we were going to have to miss his visit here in Wisconsin today," said Eric Dent, Fincantieri Marine Group director of communications. "We're hopeful that we can get the Vice President back to Wisconsin. We know it's an important state. We know that the work that's done here is important not only for Wisconsin and Michigan, but for the country -- so we're hopeful he will be able to visit in the future."
Pence is still scheduled to come to Wisconsin Wednesday afternoon. He is to appear at the shipping and packaging materials distributor Uline in Pleasant Prairie. Uline's founders, Richard and Elizabeth Uihlein, are Republican megadonors.
Pence is seeking to rally support for passing Trump's plan to replace the 25-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement with a new trade pact. Congress is considering whether to ratify the deal, known as the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
Trump was the first Republican presidential candidate since 1984 to win Wisconsin, and the state is important to his re-election campaign.
