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Former U.S. congressman and governor of Indiana, Mike Pence was elected vice president of the United States with President Donald Trump in 2016.

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence was a conservative radio and TV talk show host in the 1990s. After losing two bids for a U.S. congressional seat, he successfully ran for Congress in 2000, rising to the powerful position of Republican conference chairman, before being elected governor of Indiana in 2012. In July 2016,Republican presidential nominee Donald Trumpselected Pence as his vice-presidential running mate. On November 8, 2016, Pence was elected vice president of the United States when Trump won the presidential race. He was sworn in as the U.S. vice president on January 20, 2017.

Michael Richard Pence was born on June 7, 1959, in Columbus, Indiana. One of six children of Nancy and Edward Pence, a U.S. Army veteran who operated a series of gas stations, Pence was politically influenced by the Irish Catholic leanings of his family. He grew up idolizing former President John F. Kennedy, and volunteered for the Bartholomew County Democratic Party as a student at Columbus North High School.

While church had played an important role in Pence's early family life, he became more deeply religious as a student at Hanover College.Additionally, although he voted for Jimmy Carter in 1980, he became inspired byRonald Reagan and the Republican Party. After graduating with a B.A. in history in 1981, he moved to Indianapolis in 1983 to attend the Indiana University McKinney School of Law, earning his J.D. in 1986.

Pence has been married to wife Karen since 1985. A former elementary school teacher, Karen has also been involved with youth-related nonprofit organizations. The couple has three adult children: Michael, Charlotte and Audrey.

Pence went into private practice following his graduation and tried his hand at politics by becoming a precinct committeeman for the Marion County Republican Party. Seeking to make a bigger splash, he ran for Congress in 1988 and 1990, losing both times to Democrat Phil Sharp. However, Pence learned a valuable lesson in defeat; disgusted by his own line of attack ads, he penned an essay in 1991 titled "Confessions of a Negative Campaigner," and vowed to preach a positive message from then on.

Meanwhile, his public profile continued to grow. Pence served as president of the Indiana Policy Review Foundation from 1991 through 1993, before making the leap to radio talk show punditry with "The Mike Pence Show." Referring to himself as "Rush Limbaughon decaf," Pence was unapologetic in his support of a conservative agenda, but was commended for his level-headed manner and willingness to listen to opposing views. His radio show was syndicated in 1994, and he branched out to television as a morning show host the following year, before ending both programs in 1999.

Pence revived his political career by running for Congress again in 2000, this time winning a seat. Describing himself as "a Christian, a conservative and a Republican, in that order," he quickly demonstrated that he wasn't afraid to buck party lines. He opposed President George W. Bush's No Child Left Behind policy in 2001, as well as the Medicare prescription drug expansion the following year. While his positions rankled party elders, they bolstered his reputation as a man of strong convictions, and he easily won reelection five times.

Climbing the ranks of Republican leadership, Pence was named head of the Republican Study Committee in 2005. He was unsuccessful in his bid to become minority leader in 2006, losing to Ohio's John Boehner, but two years later he was unanimously elected to the powerful position of Republican conference chairman.

A staunch fiscal conservative, Pence insisted on cuts to the federal budget before supporting funding for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts in 2005, and was among the leading opponents of the federal bailout in 2008. He also drew attention for his social views, notably supporting a plan to shut down the government over a fight to defund Planned Parenthood in 2011.

In 2011, Pence announced his intention to run for governor of Indiana the following year. Despite strong name recognition and a platform focused on tax cuts and job growth, he became embroiled in a heated race with Democrat John Gregg, eventually pulling out a close win with just under 50 percent of the vote.

After he became governor, Pence had his congressional papers, which are housed at Indiana University in Bloomington, sealed. According to the donor agreement, the public is forbidden from seeing his papers from the 12 years he served in Congress until either December 5, 2022, or the death of the donor, whichever is later.

In 2013, Pence sealed the deal on a $1.1 billion give-back, the largest tax cut in state history. He also signed into lawthe state's first pre-K funding program and steered funds toward infrastructure improvements. By 2016, Indiana was enjoying a $2-billion budget surplus and a pristine triple-A credit rating, though critics pointed out that the state's wages were below national average.

Pence found himself in the national spotlight and on shaky ground after signing the Religious Freedom Restoration Act in March 2015. Intending to protect business owners who didn't want to participate in same-sex weddings, Pence instead encountered resistance from moderate members of his party and corporations that threatened to pull out ofthe state, and he was forced to alter the bill to provide exemptions for LGBTQ communities. Similarly, he came under fire in the spring of 2016 for signing a bill to prohibit abortions when the fetus has a disability.

Shortly after announcing his intention to run for a second term as governor, Pence returned to the national spotlight when he surfaced as the vice presidential candidate for likely 2016 Republican nomineeDonald Trump. Although Pence had opposed some of Trump's views, he was believed to be a good running mate for the New York business mogul due to his ties to congressional leaders and strong support among conservatives. (Pence had originally endorsed Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz during the primaries.)

On July 15, 2016, Trump officially announced that Pence was his choice for vice presidential nominee via Twitter.

At a press conference a day later, Trump called Pence a man of honor, character and honesty.

If you look at one of the big reasons that I chose Mike and, one of the reasons is party unity, I have to be honest, Trump said. So many people have said, party unity. Because Im an outsider. I dont want to be an outsider.

On July 20, 2016, Pence accepted his partys vice presidential nomination at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio. He followed Cruz, who was booed off the stage for a speech in which he declined to endorse Trump.In his acceptance speech, Pence remained composed and spoke of his running mate Trump: You know, hes a man known for a larger personality, a colorful style and lots of charisma. And so, I guess he was just looking for some balance on the ticket.

"Donald Trump gets it. He's the genuine article. He's a doer in a game usually reserved for talkers," the vice presidential nominee continued. "And when Donald Trump does his talking, he doesn't tiptoe around the thousand new rules of political correctness. He's his own man, distinctly American. Where else would an independent spirit like his find a following than in the land of the free and the home of the brave?"

On November 8, 2016, Pence was elected vice president of the United States when Donald Trump won the presidential race, defeating Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. The stunning Trump-Pence victory was considered a resounding rejection of establishment politics by blue-collar and working-class Americans.

In the early hours of the morning after the race had been called in Trump's favor, Pence spoke at the campaign's victory party at the Hilton Hotel in New York City. "This is a historic night. This is a historic time," Pence said to the crowd of supporters. "The American people have spoken and the American people have elected their new champion."

On November 11, Trump named Pence to be the head of his transition team, replacing New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. Pence's office also said he wouldcontinue to serve as Indiana governor until his term ended on January 9, 2017.

Back in his home state, Pence found himself in a legal battle to try to conceal the contents of an email sent to him by a political ally. The email was connected with Pences decision to have Indiana join other states in suing to block President Barack Obamas executive actions on immigration. Bill Groth, a Democratic lawyer, sought to have the contents of an attachment to the email made public in an appeal of an earlier court decision in which the Indiana Supreme Court ruled that it was "not for the court to decide" whether to release the emails. Pences defense team countered that the contents of the email were protected from being released under the states Access to Public Records Act.

On January 20, 2017, Pence was sworn in on the steps in front of the U.S. Capitol by Supreme Court Justice of the United States Clarence Thomas. Pence took the oath of office before Donald J. Trump was sworn in as the 45th president of the United States.

A week after the inauguration, the vice president spoke at the March for Life anti-abortion rally in Washington, D.C. Be assured, we will not grow weary, Pence told activists before the march. We will not rest until we restore a culture of life for ourselves and our posterity."

Vice President Pence also highlighted the Trump administration's support of the movement. "This administration will work with Congress to end taxpayer funding of abortion and abortion providers," he said."And we will devote those resources to health-care services for women across America.

In the first weeks of the Trump administration, Pence defended the controversial rollout of President Trump's executive order tobanimmigrants from the predominantly Muslim countries of Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen for at least 90 days, temporarily suspend the entry of refugees for 120 days and barSyrian refugees indefinitely. In an interview onFox News Sunday, the vice president said: "We are going to win the arguments because were going to take the steps necessary to protect the country, which the president of the United States has the authority to do."

President Trump also put Pence in charge of a commission to investigate alleged voter fraud in the presidential election. The president, who won the electoral college, but lost the popular vote by nearly 3 million to Clinton, claimed that 3 to 5 million people had illegally voted in the election. Bipartisan politicians including Paul Ryan refuted the claim: Ive seen no evidence to that effect, Ryan told reporters. Ive made that very, very clear.

At the very center of our democracy is the integrity of the vote the one person, one vote principle, Pence said in an interview with Fox News. And itll be my honor to lead that commission on behalf of the president and to look into that and give the American people the facts.

The vice president also played an important role in the confirmation of Betsy DeVos, President Trump's nominee for education secretary. Amid protests from Democratic critics and teachers unions that DeVos, a billionaire charter school supporter with no public school experience, was unqualified for the position, the Senate deadlocked in a 50-50 tie. Republican Senators Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska joined their Democratic colleagues in voting against DeVos. On February 7, 2017, Vice President Pence cast the historic tie-breaking vote to confirm her, the first time a vice president has been called on to break a tie in a cabinet nomination.

A week later, it was revealed that another Trump appointee, National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, had misled Vice President Pence about his conversations with Sergey Kislyak, the Russian ambassador to the United States, prior to the inauguration.

According to The Washington Post, Flynn privately discussed U.S. sanctions against Russia with that countrys ambassador to the United States during the month before President Trump took office, contrary to public assertions by Trump officials. Vice President Pence had appeared on CBS News Face the Nation stating that Flynn had told him that he and Kislyak did not discuss anything having to do with the United States decision to expel diplomats or impose censure against Russia."

Flynn resigned on February 13, 2017, after less than one month on the job, and in his letter of resignation he wrote: Unfortunately, because of the fast pace of events, I inadvertently briefed the vice president-elect and others with incomplete information regarding my phone calls with the Russian ambassador. I have sincerely apologized to the president and the vice president, and they have accepted my apology.

Weeks later, reports circulated that Pence's personal website had been hacked, due to the bizarre content being featured. It turned out that viewers were confused by a parody site attributed to the VP, created by Funny or Die.

Unlike President Trump, Pence was said to have fostered strong relationships with the men who preceded him in the executive branch. In November 2017, a news story revealed that Pence conversed with Obama's VP, Joe Biden, at least once per month, and also met with Bush's former second-in-command,Dick Cheney.Their discussions were said to involve theexchange of ideas and advice, with the former VPs relaying valuable lessons learned during their administrations.

In late December, Pence made an unannounced trip toAfghanistan to demonstrate American commitment to stability in the region, more than 16 years after war broke out. Weve been on a long road together, but President Trump made it clear earlier this year that we are with you, Pence told Afghan officials, adding, we are here to see this through.

In January 2018, weeks after President Trump raised an outcry by announcing his recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, Pence visited the region.Much of his trip focused on working with U.S. partners to counter terrorism and helping Christian minorities in the Middle East, though he also attempted to smooth over things with Arab leaders. That aspect didn't work out as well, as Pence and King Abdullah II of Jordan publicly "agreed to disagree" over the decision to recognize Jerusalem, while Palestinian PresidentMahmoud Abbas refused to even meet with the American vice president.

Weeks later, Pence became a central figure in the politics surrounding the Winter Olympics, held inPyeongChang, South Korea. First, his selection as head of the U.S. delegation wascriticized by openly gay men's figure skater Adam Rippon, who cited Pence's alleged animosity toward the LGBTQ community.Rippon also reportedly rejected Pence's overtures to meet, though the VP's office denied having extended an invitation.

In February, before the start of the Games, Pence delivered a tough message to North Korea with the announcement that more sanctions were forthcoming. Toward the end of the Games, The Washington Post reported that Pence had planned to secretly meet with a high-level delegation of North Korean leaders, before they canceled at the last minute. The attempted meeting contrasted with the administration's public stance that there would be no dialogue until North Korea first agreed to abandon its nuclear program.

Returning stateside, the vice president generated more controversy with his comments at a luncheon hosted by the anti-abortion organization Susan B. Anthony List & Life Institute in late February. "I just know in my heart of hearts that this will be the generation that restores life in America," he said, adding, "If all of us do all we can, we can once again, in our time, restore the sanctity of life to the center of American law."

In August 2018, Pence delivered a speech at the Pentagon in which he outlined the administration's plans to createasixth branch of the U.S. military, the"Space Force." Declaring, "We must have American dominance in space, and so we will," he noted that President Trump would request $8 billion over the next five years to support military operations in that arena.

While such military expansion would require congressional approval, the Department of Defense attempted to kick-start the process by identifying several steps to take in the meantime,including establishing civilian oversight for the Space Force and creating a United States Space Command. Critics countered by calling it unnecessary, expensive and likely to cause bureaucratic problems.

The following year, Pence was dragged into the House impeachment inquiry of President Trump after The Washington Post reported that the vice president was involved in efforts to pressure Ukraine into investigating 2020 presidential candidate Joe Biden.

Around that time, Pence and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo traveled to Ankara, Turkey, where they successfully brokered an arrangement with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to allow the safe passage of Kurdish forces from an area in northeastern Syria under fire from a Turkish military operation.

On February 26, 2020, President Trump announced that Vice President Pence would lead the administration's response to the coronavirus, which originated in China and was spreading around the world.

Citing his experience with the emergence of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) as Indiana governor, Pence stressed the importance of partnerships betweenstate and local governments and health authorities when responding to infectious diseases, and said he woulddetermine the "best options for action to see to the safety and well being and health of the American people."

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Mike Pence - Age, Family & Vice Presidency - Biography

As she confronted the President over the problem, things got tense quickly.

Then Mike Pence spoke up. The Vice President deescalated the confrontation by saying he would personally follow up with Lujan Grisham. Within 30 minutes of the call ending, the first-term Democratic governor got a private phone call from Pence, according to an aide for Lujan Grisham, who said the call went a long way toward engendering some goodwill.

But in the three weeks since, Pence has largely risen to the occasion. White House officials have been reassured to have Pence in charge, and he's gotten mostly good marks from governors and public health officials he's worked with. That includes some of the President's most strident political opponents, many of whom have been impressed by Pence's communicativeness and responsiveness.

"I think it had a great impact on kind of focusing the mind," a senior White House official said. "It's the Vice President of the United States at the head of the table."

Pence and his team initially struggled to rally the White House staff to what was quickly becoming the top priority. With outgoing White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney all-but powerless to lead, Pence's chief of staff Marc Short turned to someone with more influence and firepower than the vice president himself: Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser, to mixed results.

Still, Pence's leadership on coronavirus is undoubtedly the most high-profile moment of his vice presidency and has been a shot in the arm for his political standing. Long seen as a bit player in the daily drama of the White House, Pence has largely been content in his role as loyal sidekick, allowing for no daylight with Trump as he collects the trust of Trump's loyal political base.

But now, the former Indiana governor with indisputable presidential ambitions finds himself in his most presidential role to date, particularly has Trump has ceded the spotlight. One of the most visible impacts Pence has had is his decision to bring back the daily press briefings, which had vanished at the White House over the past year. It's all part of what Pence spokeswoman Katie Miller said is the Vice President's "mission" to provide transparency amid this crisis.

During his near-daily appearances at the White House briefing room podium, Pence has exuded qualities that aren't exactly Trump's strong-suit: calm, organized, collaborative.

"I do think that Americans see him probably in a different role than they've seen him before. It's a reassuring leadership role," a senior administration official said. "And he's been able to communicate to the American people with a calming presence."

Working with governors

More than anyone, the nation's governors -- who are all dealing most directly with containment and surveillance of the virus -- have had a front-row seat to Pence's leadership.

"I think quite honestly one of the smartest moves, one of the best things the President did was put Mike Pence in charge of this operation," said Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican and the chairman of the National Governors Association.

"The Vice President speaks with more clarity and more directness. You can tell he's leading the team," said Hogan. "The Vice President just knows more detail."

Pence has also helped improve relations with some of the country's Democratic governors who, while not fans of Trump, have forged a basic understanding with the Vice President, a former governor himself.

That's been particularly notable with New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, who has been one of the Trump administration's most outspoken critics over the response to the virus. The relationship between Pence and Cuomo has been fairly positive, particularly after the two met on Feb. 28 and testing in New York was rolled out, according to a senior aide to Cuomo.

Pence has primarily viewed his role as two-fold, a senior administration official said: marshaling a whole-of-government effort from the inside while also serving as the public and reassuring face of the government response.

Pence aides also tout his longstanding relationship with Trump -- forged over weekly lunches and a track record of unfailing loyalty -- as key to Pence's effectiveness. During the coronavirus epidemic, a senior administration official said Trump and Pence speak multiple times a day, with Pence becoming a two-way vector for information between Trump and the task force.

"His job is to bring the decisions -- the important ones -- to the President," the official said.

Still limited by Trump

Even so, some officials say Trump's own off-the-cuff remarks in recent weeks have undermined Pence's image as a commanding leader of the task force.

For Democrats on Capitol Hill, Pence's role as the head of the coronavirus task force has been seen as more as a conduit of information than the person in charge. Multiple Democrats who spoke with CNN said Pence's office has been responsive to questions and getting information to offices when pressed, but that ultimately Pence had been undermined by the President's shifting messages.

"Senators appreciate what the Vice President is doing," one Democratic congressional aide told CNN, noting that at a recent lunch, the Vice President and his team stuck around for roughly 45 minutes fielding questions on coronavirus.

But the problem has often been one of mixed signals and insufficient follow-through, say aides close to Democratic state and federal officials. Even the aide to Lujan Grisham told CNN that Pence's call back on testing materials Monday was atypical of the Trump administration's interaction with governors.

"There's not always follow-through," the aide said Tuesday. "But yesterday there was."

Behind closed doors, top officials including Dr. Anthony Fauci and HHS Secretary Alex Azar say Pence has done a good job communicating the herculean task ahead, but aides say at times those comments have been dwarfed by something the President says hours later.

"Mr. Pence has a really uncanny ability to make you feel like your concerns are registering without him doing anything about it," said the Democratic congressional aide. "Like everything with this administration and so many senators learned this with the shutdown, nobody speaks for the President except for the President himself."

CNN's Kristen Holmes and Ali Zaslav contributed to this story.

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Long a bit player, Pence makes the most of his lead role in coronavirus response - CNN

Mike Pence, Opinion contributor Published 3:15 a.m. ET March 18, 2020 | Updated 10:31 a.m. ET March 18, 2020

When people ask how to protect themselves against the spread of COVID-19, one of the first suggestions from doctors is washing your hands. Here are the do's and don'ts. USA TODAY

The American people have already pulled together in so many ways in response to this virus, just as weve always done during other challenging times.

In the fight against the coronavirus, the Trump administration is not just taking a whole of government approach, but a whole of America approach.

Weve worked seamlessly with state and local leaders from both political parties. Since January, weve held 36 briefings with more than 15,000 state, localand tribal leaders from every state and territory in America. And that is in addition to thousands of individual conversations with state, local, and tribal officials.

A vaccine for the coronavirus has already begun a phase 1 clinical trial. The president has dramatically expanded access to telemedicinefor seniors on Medicare. And the Health and Human Services Department is collaborating with Johnson &Johnson to develop treatments for coronavirus infections, while actively soliciting proposals for other medical products to help combat the virus.

The risk of serious illness for the average American remains low. But the risk is heavily weighted to the elderly with underlying health conditions.

Now is a critical time. As the president said on Monday, over the next two weeks, there are actions that every American can and should take to help us slow the spread of the coronavirus. If we succeed in limiting the number of new cases, then we can dedicate more resources to the most vulnerable and save lives.

As the president said, if you or anyone in your household is sick, then please stay home. The elderly and those with serious health conditions should also stay home and stay away from other people, even if they do not have symptoms of the coronavirus.

Vice President Mike Pence greets Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, left, as Pence arrives, Thursday, March 5, 2020 at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state.(Photo: Ted S. Warren, AP)

No one should visit a nursing home, retirement homeor long-term care facility unless to provide necessary care. All Americans should avoid unnecessary travel, restaurants, bars, public food courtsand gathering in groups of more than 10 people. Kids should stay home from school, and Americans who do not work in our critical infrastructure like health care or pharmaceuticals should work from home.

Its always a good idea to practice common sense to protect your health and the health of your family, but its especially important right now. Use good hygiene. Wash your hands, especially after touching frequently used surfaces like doorknobs.

Use disinfectant on frequently used items and surfaces. Avoid touching your face. If you have to sneeze, then use a tissue or the inside of your elbow.

These steps might seem small, but they can make a big difference for your family, your communityand our country. Stopping the spread of the coronavirus over these next two weeks can prevent many more cases in the future and even save the lives of those at risk.

More: FDA commissioner: Be wary of anyone claiming they can cure COVID-19. Talk to your doctor.

The president and I are deeply proud that the American people have already pulled together in so many ways in response to this virus, just as weve always done during other challenging times in our history. The president and I have been especially pleased to see churches and businesses come forward to help those in need. We have personally met with leaders from the manufacturing, cruiseline, airlineand tourism industries, and many more. On a daily basis, Americas CEOs have been calling us to ask how they can help.

In the weeks ahead, President Trump and this administration will continue to take strong action to protect the American people, and we will continue to build on the partnerships that weve forged with state and local governments, as well as with the scientific and business communities.

But for all of these important steps, there is no substitute for the action of the American people. If all of us can take these important steps requested by the president over the next two weeks, then we can be confident that we will get through this, and we will see a better, healthier future for America.

Mike Pence is the vice president of the United States andchairman of the White House Coronavirus Task Force.

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Mike Pence: We need the American people's help to fight coronavirus now - USA TODAY

As chief of the Trump administrations coronavirus task force, Vice President Mike Pence has upped his profile plenty on the public radar. Mr. Pence is also getting good reviews.

Hes a daily, consistent presence on the airwaves. He provides useful info rather than random digressions. He leans on health and medical experts both at public events and behind the scenes, write Axios co-founders Mike Allen and Jim VandeHei, in a review of this uncommon surge.

It is his presidential moment, they say.

Pence, 60, a likely contender for the Republican nomination in 2024, has become one of the most praised administration officials during the virus crisis, they note.

Tech author Scott Galloway said the vice president had done a reasonably good job while Politico media columnist Jack Shafer said Mr. Pence acted less like the coronavirus czar and more like a good old-fashioned White House press secretary. He was calm. He was direct. He was polite in face of shouted, competing questions.

Mr. Pences chief of staff Marc Short tells Axios that the vice president has an understanding of what people are looking for facts that are straightforward, not alarmist.

Most importantly, Pence seems on the level. The more Americans see of him, the more likely they are to believe what the administration says about this crisis, provided that Pences statements about the pandemic hold up over time, advises Paul Mirengoff, a columnist at Powerline.com.

REASSURING NEWS

Sixty-two percent of U.S. adults assess the strength of U.S. national defense as being about right, two points off the record-high 64% from 1990. About twice as many say U.S. defense is not strong enough (25%) as say it is stronger than it needs to be (12%), reports Gallup analyst Jeffrey M. Jones, who adds that the majority of Americans are also comfortable with the amount of military spending.

At a time when Americans are relatively satisfied with the strength of the U.S. military and the amount of military spending, 58% say the U.S. is No. 1 in the world militarily, writes Mr. Jones. See more numbers in the Poll du Jour at columns end.

A TEMPORARY TRUCE FOR GOP, DEMOCRATS?

As public alarm grows over the coronavirus health emergency, one veteran columnist has a simple panacea which could at least get the nation through the next month: Neutralize the bitter sparring between Democrats and President Trump.

Its time to do something about our national divide. A 30-day political cease-fire is reasonable and doable. We must take a break from the hate, writes New York Post columnist Michael Goodwin.

A month would be a good cooling-off period to allow the public-health emergency to take its rightful place at the top of the agenda without the distraction of personal sniping, which is especially demoralizing these days. In this environment, each attack smacks of pettiness and politics-as-usual. Partisanship has an important role in our enduring experiment with self-government, but not now. Now is the time for a united America to mobilize against a lethal scourge, he continues.

A 30-day cease-fire would allow the entire nation to focus on saving lives and preventing further disaster to the economy and jobs. There would be plenty of time later to resume the political hostilities before the November election, Mr. Goodwin advises. An agreement would be nice, but isnt necessary. All they need do is start behaving as Americans first and partisans second.

BORDERING ON INSANITY

In the wake of the pared-down Democratic presidential field, one GOP official has a reminder.

Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders are leading the Democrat Partys charge for open borders. And theyre sounding like the same person: Biden has promised to end illegal immigration detention across the board, and to not deport illegal immigrants who have committed felony-like offenses, points out Steve Guest, rapid response communications director for the Republican National Committee.

Bernie backs a moratorium on all deportations of illegal immigrants in the U.S. and says that it is not appropriate to deport illegal immigrants not following law in the U.S. And both Biden and Bernie support government health care for illegal immigrants. Bottom Line: While Bernie and Biden push for plans that would make the border crisis worse, President Trumps deal with Mexico has achieved results, Mr. Guest advises, citing a single Associated Press headline regarding the outcome of Mr. Trumps productive call to Mexico to help with the illegal immigration challenge:

AP exclusive: Border apprehensions drop for eight straight months.

HELPFUL DIVERSION

Just because coronavirus has you avoiding public spaces doesnt mean you cant get cultured from home, reports Fast Company analyst Lilly Smith, who shares all the details.

Google Arts & Culture has partnered with over 2,500 museums and galleries around the world, including Amsterdams Van Gogh Museum, Londons National Gallery, and the Whitney Museum of American Art. The featured collections vary depending on the museum, but most include online exhibits, a street view that lets you explore inside the institution itself, as well as galleries of the artwork, where you can deep dive into paintings, Ms. Smith advises.

Find it all at Artsandculture.google.com/partner.

POLL DU JOUR

63% of U.S. adults say its important for the U.S. to be the No. 1 military force in the world; 86% of Republicans, 56% of independents and 45% of Democrats agree.

62% overall say the strength of the national defense is about right; 67% of Republicans, 64% of independents and 52% of Democrats agree.

58% overall say the U.S. has the No. 1 defense in the world; 75% of Republicans, 52% of independents and 46% of Democrats agree.

50% overall say U.S. defense spending is about right; 72% of Republicans, 42% of independents and 36% of Democrats agree.

41% overall say the U.S. is only one of several leading powers in the world; 25% of Republicans, 46% of independents and 53% of Democrats agree.

Source: A Gallup poll OF 1,028 U.S. adults conducted Feb. 3-16 and released Monday.

Follow Jennifer Harper on Twitter @HarperBulletin

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Inside the Beltway: Gravitas: Mike Pence earns new respect from the media - The Washington TImes

The weakness of Donald Trumps response to the COVID-19 crisisthe weakness of Trumps characterwas captured in a response that Vice-President Mike Pence gave, on Thursday, to CNNs Alisyn Camerota. She noted that, within hours of Trumps address to the nation the previous night, the Administration had to issue clarifications: that the travel ban he had announced, which he said would apply to Europe except for the United Kingdom, cover a tremendous amount of trade and cargo, and have exemptions only for Americans who had undergone screening, would, in fact, not apply to cargo, cover only countries in the Schengen zone (a subset of European countries with limited border checks between them), and would also have exemptions for permanent residents and citizens immediate family members. Those are big clarifications. It was bad enough that Trumps actions were entirely inadequatehe didnt address problems with testing, for example. But it was stunning that he seemingly could not accurately explain his bad ideas. International financial markets began dropping as he spoke, and the inadequacy of his words and his Presidency became manifest. And so, Camerota asked Pence, Why the confusion?

I dont think there was confusion, Pence replied, blankly, loyally, absurdly. The President took another historic step, just like he did in January with China, to suspend all travel from Europe, Alisyn, for the next thirty days. Instead of explaining the Presidents confused remarks, Pence echoed them, adding to the muddle. Pence, it should be remembered, is not only the Vice-President but the nations dedicated coronavirus point manhis function is to cordinate and clarify and at least give the illusion of leadership. And yet it took another few sentences before he mentioned that there would be Americans coming homeso not a suspension of all travelafter being screened, followed by a reference to every returning American and legal resident, with a note that they would be asked to self-quarantine for fourteen days. But, a couple of minutes later, Pence again referred to suspending all travel for thirty days from Europe. Who coming from where is allowed or required to do what? The main thing to remember is that the President did something historic.

The incompetence and the sycophancy are connected. Pence delivers what Trump demands, even when Trump demands the pretense that COVID-19 will simply go away if people stop worrying about it. It wont. It is not just that Trump doesnt always have the very best people around him; he has too many people who seem to care only whether he is happy. Even people with great expertise spend too much time, at almost every public briefing, ritually noting his leadership. Such words are not confidence-inspiring. There have been reports that Pence at various points suggested that Trump take some practical actionsfor example, in managing the plight of a cruise shipand that Trump said no. Other officials have reportedly had similar experiences. But, as long as they do not publicly confront their boss or pressure him to take real action on a growing crisis, that only means so much. And Pence, for one, is not doing so; instead, he kept telling Camerota that what looked like haphazard moves were all part of the Presidents strategy, extolling him as a leader who took action. But someone very prominent in the Administration or the Republican leadership has to get angry, in a way that is demonstrative, dramatic, and even, for whoever it is, out of character.

Instead, Pence is not alone. He is behaving in a way that Republicans have come to regard as normal. They must engage in the increasingly farcical exercise of praise for Trump. Sometimes, as when they join him onstage at a rally, the main immediate damage may be to their self-respect. At others, as in the impeachment hearings, when Republican after Republican claimed that the President was an innocent victim of the deep state, the damage was to their duty to the Constitution. During a pandemic, the harm is not only to public health but to the countrys structure, as fissures in the health and social-welfare systems widen, exposing just how vulnerable many Americans arethe hundred thousand homeless children in New York Citys public schools, for exampleand a larger order breaks apart. (The damage may even be to their own health: Senators Lindsey Graham and Rick Scott are under self-quarantine, after mingling at a Mar-a-Lago event that included a Brazilian official who has now been confirmed as having COVID-19; Trump was also present but has so far neither been tested nor quarantined himself.) On Thursday, Senator Mitch McConnell, who has praised what he decided to call Trumps early, bold action on COVID-19, reportedly had to be pressured to delay a Senate recess until a COVID-19 relief bill was passed. And among Fox News commentators, as Dylan Byers notes, there is still outrage that some virus has the nerve to undermine Trump. Pence, speaking to Camerota, tried to pin the blame on Europe, which he said was the site of most new cases. What will he say when America wins that title?

One of the most mangled sections of Pences interview had to do with testing. He suggested that anyone who needed a test could get one just by going to a doctor, who would arrange oneor maybe that would happen soon, if not yet. When Camerota showed him figures suggesting that the number of tests completed was still just in the thousands, he said he thought that the information was wrong. But he refused to even estimate the right number. The mismanagement of testing, particularly as coronavirus was just reaching the United States, appears to have triggered a disaster. It remains shockingly hard for people to get testedtest kits and the chemical reagents needed for them are a scarce resourceeven when they have symptoms and known contact with COVID-19 patients. According to the COVID Tracking Project, in which The Atlantic is a partner, the tally of tests completed was nearing sixteen thousand five hundred on Friday; South Korea has conducted more than ten times as many. It is a failing. Lets admit it, Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said, of the U.S.s testing system, at a hearing of the House Oversight Committee. Trump will never admit it.

The testing situation is such a shambles that even some Republicans have begun to acknowledge it. Senator Lamar Alexander called it a serious deficiency, according to Politico, and Senator James Lankford said that the idea that people could simply go and get testedwhich Trump has pushedwas just wrong. Senator Mitt Romney (who might actually be good at managing this sort of thing) said that the situation is frustrating. The question is whether that consciousness of failure will lead to a breaking point in the Republicans system of obedience to Trump. This is not a matter of using the coronavirus crisis to bring him down; its a question of the Presidents party really pushing him to do what he can to stop the virus from bringing the country down. And if he wont, they can start voting with Democrats in Congress, and give support to governors and other local officialsand, most fundamentally, they can be honest with the public. Perhaps Republicans could even nominate someone else at the convention this August (if, given the fears of COVID-19, its still held). That seems far-fetched, but so, a month ago, did trading being halted on the New York Stock Exchange, campuses closing, Broadway shutting down, major-league seasons getting suspended, and parts of the city of New Rochelle being cordoned off. Unimaginable scenes at overwhelmed hospitals may be ahead.

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Mike Pence and the Farce of Trusting Donald Trump on the Coronavirus - The New Yorker