Former Vice President Mike Pence cited January 6 as his justification for seeking the White House during a speech in Iowa. In recent months, Pence has excoriated his former boss, former President Donald Trump, for what he believes was reckless behavior in the lead-up to the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Pence stands at 3.8% on the latest Real Clear Politics Average in the polls. He joins former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Amb. Nikki Haley, and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson in the crowded bottom tier for the Republican nomination. Trump dominates the field with 53.2% support, more than 20 points ahead of his nearest challenger Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
He made it clear to all that his decision to run for president was personal.
“January 6 was a tragic day in the life of our nation, but thanks to the courage of law enforcement violence was quelled and we reconvened the Congress the very same day to complete the work of the American people under the Constitution of the United States,” Pence said. “As I have said many times, on that fateful day President Trump’s words were reckless. They endangered my family and everyone at the Capitol.
Pence continued: “But on that day President Trump also demanded that I choose between him and the Constitution. Now voters will be faced with the same choice. I chose the Constitution.”
He claimed that he had no power to reject the electoral votes from disputed states and to send them back to the state legislatures for reconsideration.
He vowed during an appearance on CNN that no Capitol rioter would be pardoned in a Pence administration, setting himself in contrast with DeSantis and Trump who have each promised pardons.
“We cannot ever allow what happened on January 6 to happen again at the heart of our democracy, and I will stand by the decisions. And the due process in our court of laws. I have no interest or no intention of pardoning those who assaulted police officers or vandalized our Capitol,” Pence said. “They need to be answerable to the law.”
Pence Proud of Trump Administration Accomplishments
Pence expressed his pride in what the Trump administration had accomplished while he was part of it.
His speech touched on traditional Republican boilerplate issues.
“I know we can bring this country back. We can defend our nation and secure our border. We can revive our economy. We can put our nation back on a path to a balanced budget,” Pence said. “We can defend our liberties and give America a new beginning for life. But it will require new leadership ― in the White House and the Republican Party.”
Pence continued: “Ours will be a vision grounded in freedom … In all this work, we will not seek to divide the American people but instead, appeal to the better angels of their nature.”
Mike Pence Gets Mixed Reactions
His speech won him the priase of Sen. Lindsey Graham who wrote on Twitter, “Mike Pence is one of the hardest working and most decent people I have ever known. The field has grown in a very good way by his decision to throw his hat in the ring for the 2024 Republican Presidential nomination. He has much to offer the country.”
Trump supporters such as Sebastian Gorka slammed Pence following the speech.
“Sadly @Mike_Pence you are lying. You betrayed the Constitution by refusing to use your enumerated powers to return suspicious Electoral College returns to utterly corrupt States. You are unfit to serve America again,” Gorka wrote on Twitter.
Pro-Trump Twitter social media influencer Ron Filipkowski joked that Pence was the “perfect candidate for the 1996 Republican primary.”
Washington Examiner columnist Byron York took aim at Pence saying he has no way to win.
“So, in addition to feeling that he cannot name the administration in which he served, Pence also faces regular attacks from the president he served who just happens to be the leading candidate in the race Pence is now joining,” York wrote. “It’s a crazy situation. How in the world can it work out well for Pence? The short answer is, it probably won’t. Most candidates lose,” York wrote.
John Rossomando was a senior analyst for Defense Policy and served as Senior Analyst for Counterterrorism at The Investigative Project on Terrorism for eight years. His work has been featured in numerous publications such as The American Thinker, The National Interest, National Review Online, Daily Wire, Red Alert Politics, CNSNews.com, The Daily Caller, Human Events, Newsmax, The American Spectator, TownHall.com, and Crisis Magazine. He also served as senior managing editor of The Bulletin, a 100,000-circulation daily newspaper in Philadelphia, and received the Pennsylvania Associated Press Managing Editors first-place award for his reporting.
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