Mike Pence Rips AP For Publishing His Wife's Email Address

Mike Pence blasted The Associated Press Saturday and demanded an apology for revealing his wife’s email address in a story on the vice president’s use of his personal email account to conduct state business while he was Indiana governor.

Pence complained that releasing the address of his wife, Karen Pence, was “violating her privacy and our security.” He added in a tweet: “When we requested they take it down, they refused. The @AP owes my wife an apology.”

Pence also shared a letter from his lawyer Mark Paoletta  to AP’s CEO Gary Pruitt saying that Karen Pence has since been the target of “vitriolic and malicious” emails which has “raised serious security concerns.”

The wire service did remove Karen Pence’s email address after learning that she still used the account. But it also issued a statement saying: “The AP stands by its story , which addresses important transparency issues.”

Both Pence and his wife’s emails were published Friday in a story about the vice president’s bid to block access to emails he had written as governor. The article said that both email addresses were used to conduct official business back to 2013.

The Indianapolis Star  had reported the previous day that Pence routinely used his private email account to conduct state business , including dealing with “sensitive matters” like homeland security issues, FBI updates on arrests and terror attacks around the globe. The newspaper also revealed that his account had been hacked by a low-level scammer.

Pence has come under fire for the emails in the wake of Trump campaign blasts against Hillary Clinton for using a personal email server for messages while she was secretary of state. (Trump also notoriously announced the cell phone number  of then-rival Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) at a 2015 campaign speech.)

Pence, who also roundly criticized Clinton for her email set up, insisted there was “no comparison whatsoever” between the two of them. He said he did not handle classified information as Clinton did.

It’s not a crime in Indiana for a governor to use personal email accounts for business, but it’s understood that those emails would be maintained as public records , according to the Indianapolis Star.