Mediaboss Marketing

16.00EDTClosing summary

North Carolinas supreme court handed down a ruling that paves the way for partisan gerrymandering in the state, which its GOP-controlled legislature is expected to use to oust four Democratic House lawmakers. Meanwhile, special counsel Jack Smiths investigation of Donald Trump continues, with former vice-president Mike Pence appearing before his grand jury yesterday.

Heres what else happened today:

Samuel Alito, author of the supreme court opinion overturning Roe v Wade, said a leak of the decisions draft put conservative justices in danger.

Ron DeSantis is facing a reckoning over his actions while deployed at the Guantnamo prison camp, but does not like being asked about it.

An investigation into allegations of misconduct by Brett Kavanaugh prior to his supreme court confirmation contained omissions, a Guardian investigation has found.

Republican lawmakers nationwide are accusing their opponents of inciting insurrections, even when their actions dont fit the definition of the word.

The White House was not pleased with Axios, after a report from the outlet detailing concerns about Bidens age.

Updated at 16.00EDT

South Carolinas abortion ban was defeated in part due to a revolt by female Republican senators, who joined with Democrats to vote down the proposal.

One of those lawmakers, Sandy Senn, spoke to MSNBC about what motivated her stand:

"I'm not going to vote in a way that's going to oppress women simply because the party might want me to pander to them."

South Carolina State Rep. Sandy Senn (R) defends joining Democrats to vote down a near-total abortion ban Thursday in the legislature pic.twitter.com/5igAVMyrCz

Updated at 15.58EDT

Democrats have a tough order next year. They will need to defend their control of the White House and majority in the Senate, and try to retake the House. The Guardians Martin Pengelly has more details on how Joe Biden plans to deploy vice-president Kamala Harris to to win a second term:

As Joe Biden seeks to conquer public concern he is too old to run for and complete a second term in office, the White House is reportedly planning to boost support for Bidens vice-president, Kamala Harris, in the face of increasing Republican attacks.

An unnamed source familiar with conversations inside the White House told NBC News: They need her to be strong. They know she is a target, and the attacks have always been intense, and the ante is going to be upped. So they want to make sure she is on the best possible footing.

An unnamed Democratic strategist, meanwhile, pointed to Bidens eight years as vice-president to Barack Obama.

Updated at 15.35EDT

Roe v Wade was overturned after Donald Trump appointed three conservative justices to the supreme court, which he was able to do because Republicans controlled the Senate. And Republicans gained control of the Senate by spending the 2010s ousting Democrats from their seats, as states once friendly to the party turned against them.

One of the last Democratic senators hanging on in a red state is West Virgnias Joe Manchin. He is up for re-election next year in a contest that could decide Senate control, and while he hasnt said if he will seek a third full term, he gained a new challenger this week.

The Republican governor Jim Justice announced his candidacy alongside his pet, Babydog. The English Bulldog was right next to him in a public event to kick off his campaign, and in a Fox News interview:

Gov. Jim Justice (R-WV), with Babydog seated next to him, reacts to Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) saying I will win any race I enter after Justice announced a run for his seat:

I welcome Joe Manchin to come into the race But, at the end of the day, I think well be OK. pic.twitter.com/00htCIAp0h

Updated at 15.24EDT

By overturning Roe v Wade, Samuel Alito and other conservative supreme court justices allowed states to ban the procedure, and some Republican-led governments already have. But the Associated Press reports that such efforts have faced surprising headwinds in some Republican jurisdictions:

Abortion rights campaigners won notable victories in Nebraska and South Carolina on Thursday, blocking a six-week ban in the first state and a near-total ban in the second.

In Lincoln, Nebraska, a vote to end debate so the bill could advance failed by one vote. Cheers erupted as opponents of the bill waved signs and chanted: Whose house? Our house!

Jo Giles, executive director of the Womens Fund of Omaha, was brought to tears.

Wow! she said. This was unexpected, but were so glad to have this win. We have fought so hard. This bill is not what the majority of women in this state wanted.

Updated at 15.04EDT

Samuel Alito, the author of last years supreme court decision overturning Roe v Wade and allowing states to ban abortion, said the leak of a draft ruling put conservative justices in peril.

Those of us who were thought to be in the majority, thought to have approved my draft opinion, were really targets of assassination, Alito said in an interview published by the Wall Street Journal. It was rational for people to believe that they might be able to stop the decision in Dobbs by killing one of us.

The leak of the courts decision in Dobbs v Jackson Womens Health Organization marked a rare moment in which the public learned of the courts decision before its official announcement. Supreme court chief justice John Roberts ordered an investigation into the leak, and this past January, the courts marshal said she couldnt say who was the culprit.

I personally have a pretty good idea who is responsible, but thats different from the level of proof that is needed to name somebody, Alito said. It was a part of an effort to prevent the Dobbs draft . . . from becoming the decision of the court. And thats how it was used for those six weeks by people on the outsideas part of the campaign to try to intimidate the court.

Supreme court justices rarely grant interviews, but Alito, who was appointed by Republican George W Bush, spoke to an an editor on the Journals editorial board, which is reliably conservative. The other interviewer was David B Rivkin Jr, a former attorney in the administrations of Ronald Reagan and George HW Bush.

Updated at 14.47EDT

A woman who was jailed for her participation in the Jan. 6 insurrection embraced Donald Trump at a campaign event and called for the execution of Mike Pence.

At a Thursday campaign event in New Hampshire, QAnon supporter Micki Larson-Olson was pointed out to Trump as someone who participated in Jan 6. Trump then found Larson-Olsen, gave her a hug, and called her terrific, reported the Hill. Trump also told Larson-Olsen to hang in there.

During an NBC interview the following day, the woman called Trump the real president, adding that she would like a front seat of Mike Pence being executed.

Larson-Olsen was previously sentenced to six months in prison for her participation in Jan. 6 riots.

Updated at 14.26EDT

The White House has responded to claims made by the political website Axios that White House staffers face challenges with Joe Biden because of his age.

In an article published Friday, Axios said voters were concerned about Bidens age amid recent announcements that he plans to run for a second term.

The article also White House officials were amazed at Bidens stamina often adding the caveat for his age and had difficulty scheduling meetings with Biden outside of 10am to 4pm on weekdays.

In response to the article, White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates criticized the outlet on Twitter, writing that Axios previously claimed White House advisers as sources on a story claiming Biden would not announce a reelection campaign. He posted:

Funnily, half our on record response was omitted. For transparency: Are these the same advisers and close allies who you wrote on April 3 don't expect him to announce a run for re-election any time soon?"

Age well, kids: "Biden holds back '24 launch" https://t.co/PuGtQKzfk1 https://t.co/yfBCDTSp9M

Updated at 14.26EDT

Our columnist Moira Donegan considers the current impasse between the Democratic-controlled Senate judiciary committee and the conservative US supreme court chief justice, John Roberts, over ethics rules and the justices, in light of reporting about Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch

It was a short letter. John Roberts, chief justice of the US supreme court, was brief in his missive to Democratic senator Dick Durbin, who chairs the Senate judiciary committee.

Citing separation of powers concerns and the importance of preserving judicial independence, Roberts declined to appear before the committee to discuss disturbing recent revelations of ethics violations at the court.

Congress is meant to exert checks on judicial power to investigate or even impeach judges who abuse their office or interpret the law in ways that violate its spirit, and to affirm that the elected branches will hold more sway over policy than the appointed one. But the chief justices show of indifference to congressional oversight authority reflects a new reality: that there are now effectively no checks on the power of the court at least none that Democrats have the political will to use and that the justices can be assured that they will face no repercussions even if they act in flagrant violation of ethical standards. It seems that they intend to.

Read on

Updated at 13.36EDT

Heres some lunchtime reading from Jason Stanley, Jacob Urowsky professor of philosophy at Yale University, and the author of How Fascism Works

Fox News has finally broken ties with its most popular star, Tucker Carlson. His ousting has been bemoaned by some commentators, who have taken Carlson to be a rebellious anti-war populist, evading easy political characterization. But is it really so complicated to classify Carlsons political ideology?

In late February 2022, Carlson, in the face of Russias invasion of Ukraine, began a pro-Russia monologue urging his audience to ask themselves the question: Why do I hate Putin so much?

The gist of Carlsons comments about Russias leader is that Putin should not be regarded as an enemy. Instead, the real enemies of America are those who call white Americans racist, those who teach so-called critical race theory in schools, business elites who ship jobs abroad, and those who imposed Covid lockdowns on the United States.

Read on

Updated at 13.05EDT

More shots have been fired in the brewing Republican brouhaha over Ron DeSantiss fight with Disney, if from an unexpected artillery piece: that fielded by Kevin McCarthy, the speaker of the US House.

Id give him the same advice I gave President Biden, McCarthy told CNBC, while basking in having managed to pass a budget proposal amid a standoff with the White House over the increasingly pressing need to raise the debt ceiling.

Why wouldnt you sit down and negotiate and talk? If theres differences, you can always find ways that you can solve this problem.

DeSantis and Disney are at odds over the Florida governors so-called dont say gay law about teaching gender and LGBTQ+ issues in schools, and DeSantiss power grab at self-governing powers long enjoyed by the entertainment giant around its Disney World theme park near Orlando.

This week, Disney sued the governor and the governor, while on an international tour, snapped back.

McCarthy said: This is a big employer inside Florida. I think the governor should sit down with them. I dont think the idea of building a prison next to a place that you bring your family a threat made by DeSantis, possibly in jest is the best idea. I think itd be much better if you sat down and solved the problems.

DeSantiss standing in the Republican presidential primary has slipped, as concerns about issues including his attempt to bend Disney to his will are expressed within the party.

McCarthy added: If youre going to be a large employer inside this state, you should also abide by the rules and run your business and dont think you should get into politics. You can take whatever position you want, but remember, if youre elected to run a business, thats what your shareholders want you to do.

Here, as previously trailed today, is some further reading about DeSantiss military service:

Updated at 12.46EDT

See the original post here:
Samuel Alito says leaked abortion draft made conservative justices targets of assassination as it happened - The Guardian US

Former Vice President Mike Pence speaks in Salt Lake City on Friday, April 28, 2023. (KUTV)

Former Vice President Mike Pence speaks in downtown Salt Lake today, a day after testifying for hours before a grand jury in Washington investigating efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

Pences speech to an invitation-only lunch crowd is happening at Zions Bank headquarters, and almost certainly was scheduled before his grand jury appearance.

I will always believe by Gods grace, with my wife by my side all day and nightthat we did our duty under the Constitution of the United States of America, Pence said to a standing ovation.

The Gary R Herbert Institute for Public Policy at UVU said it invited Pence to speak on local and national public policy issues, and said he will share his insights from his time serving as vice president, congressman and governor.

Pence had the latter two roles in Indiana, but the news getting the most attention now surrounds defying former President Trumps call for him to block certification of the 2020 election resultsand Pences own likely run for the White House.

The former vice president reportedly resisted the grand jury testimony, but a federal judge ruled he had to comply with a subpoena from special counsel Jack Smith, who is focused on Trumps actions related to the 2020 election.

Politico earlier reported Pence is building out his political team to get ready for a presidential run, and that his nonprofit called Advancing American Freedom has already held a retreat in Utah attended by major donors.

Polls published by realclearpolitics.com show Pence in third place for the Republican nomination, well behind Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

On a visit to Utah while vice president, Pence promoted the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement, which was stalled in Congress at the time, but eventually became law.

After his speech at a medical equipment manufacturer, he took questions from local reporters, and he may do the same today.

Pence presided as Congress certified the election results against the wishes of Trump, and after demonstrators breached the Capitol.

The former vice president spoke of his Christian faith, immigration, national debt, and a rising threat from Chinaand it was not lost on anyone in the room that hes eyeing his own run for the White House.

I think the American people want to see us restore a threshold of civility and respect in public life once again, said Pence to applause. I believe it with all my heart.

People who watched and listened Friday described Pence as a person of strong conviction with power and experience and kindness.

RELATED: Former Vice President Mike Pence hosting roundtable discussion in Utah

But Kevin Johnson added another impression.

Hes not overly exciting, Johnson said. Hes not going to bring down the house.

Pence is running third in polls for the GOP presidential nomination, in single digits, and well behind Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Asked if he would vote for Pence for president, Curtis Blair said with a smile, You know, thats a really good question. I dont know.

Carson Jorgensen, former Utah Republican Party chair, cast Pence as a long shot.

I think its an uphill battle for him, said Jorgensen, and everybody knows it.

View original post here:
Mike Pence speaking in Utah day after grand jury testimony - KOMO News

Estimated read time: 6-7 minutes

SALT LAKE CITY Former Vice President Mike Pence received a warm welcome in Utah from several political and community leaders, when he said he believes the Biden administration has "weakened America at home and abroad," but hinted that change is coming.

He repeatedly took aim at President Joe Biden during a luncheon in the Zions Bank Head Office in Salt Lake City on Friday afternoon, blaming the president for crime, illegal immigration, energy prices and the chaotic removal of troops from Afghanistan.

"I'm here to tell you, hope is on the way," he said. "I truly believe we are 18 months away from a great American comeback, and it will start right here."

Pence, Donald Trump's two-time running mate and vice president, has long been rumored as a potential challenger to his former boss in the 2024 Republican presidential primary. Although Pence has yet to announce a formal campaign, he is reportedly planning to launch a political action committee to back his candidacy, according to Politico.

Projecting a difference in tone and style to the former president, Pence called for a return to civility and respect in political discourse in the country.

"I believe there's a hunger in this country to restore civility to the public debate," he said. "Our politics is more divided today than any time in my lifetime, (but) I'm not convinced the American people are as divided."

The closed-door roundtable was hosted by the Utah Valley University Gary R. Herbert Institute for Public Policy. Former Utah Gov. Gary Herbert and philanthropist Scott Keller, whose name adorns the Scott C. Keller business building at UVU, joined Pence for a luncheon that was open to the media, with Herbert moderating a discussion with the former vice president.

While Pence repeatedly rebuffed questions from Herbert about whether he will run in 2024, he dropped several hints that he's planning on doing so while drawing a distinct difference between himself and Trump. Where the former president has continued to grieve his loss in 2020 and cast himself as "retribution" for those he claims were wronged, Pence was optimistic about the future of the country.

"God is not done with America yet, and I believe if we will turn our hearts back to Him, the best days for the greatest nation on Earth are yet to come," he said.

Pence said his opinion of the federal government has gone down over his last two decades in politics, but said his "opinion of the American people has gone up every day."

"I've seen the compassion, the generosity, the kindness, the idealism of the American people every day," he said. "The challenge we have: we just got to have government as good as our people."

In an interview with KSL NewsRadio after his speech, Pence again declined to commit to running, but said the U.S. faces a crisis of national debt, and Americans deserve a leader who will be upfront with them.

"Without making any announcements today, if the American people were to call me into service, I think I'd spend a little less time talking to Congress and a lot more time talking to the American people," he said, when asked how he would respond to the current stalemate over the nation's debt ceiling. "It's going to take leadership, it's going to take reform, but I think it all begins with talking to the American people and telling them the truth about where we're headed in the national debt."

The Trump administration added nearly $7.8 trillion to the national debt, according to ProPublica, and Pence signaled that he wants to return to fiscally conservative government.

"I want to concede the fact that other than what we did to get the economy moving and rebuild our military, and other than what we did for families and businesses in the worst pandemic in a hundred years, I don't think our administration did everything we needed to do to restrain federal spending," he said.

Pence's visit to Utah comes a day after he testified before a grand jury in Washington, D.C., that is investigating Trump's role in efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Trump supporters had pressured Pence during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection to reject electoral votes cast for then-President-elect Joe Biden, though legal experts and Pence himself have said the vice president doesn't have that power.

Since then, Pence has had a complicated relationship with the former president and his supporters, and has emerged as a potential challenger to Trump. Last month, Pence said Trump's "reckless words endangered my family and everyone at the Capitol that day, and I know that history will hold Donald Trump accountable."

Pence said he's not at liberty to discuss his grand jury testimony publicly, and other than his interview with KSL NewsRadio, he didn't take questions from journalists.

In his speech, Pence declared Jan. 6 a "tragic day," but said he "shared the concern of millions of Americans about irregularities in the elections."

Although he's sympathetic to those who questioned the legitimacy of the election, Pence believes American institutions held together in light of the violence of Jan. 6.

"Jan. 6 was a tragic day, but thanks to the courage of law enforcement, violence was quelled. Members of both parties returned to the Capitol the very same day," he said. "And I believe a day of tragedy became a triumph for freedom because our institutions held, and I will always believe by God's grace ... that we did our duty that day under the Constitution of the United States."

Herbert acknowledged that Republicans "seem to be divided inside the party," and complained that young Americans are less likely to identify with either of the major parties.

"What do you think we should be doing?" he asked Pence. "Our young people are being attracted to socialism ... and dropping out of engagement. And they complain a lot, but they're not doing things. The future is our young people. What would you do as president to bring that about?"

But Pence seemed skeptical that there's a problem with younger Americans.

"I have to tell you, I'm so inspired by this generation. I'm absolutely convinced the young Americans today are the freedom generation," he said. "I mean, this is a generation that's grown up with the whole world at their fingertips ... you can't tell me that the generation that has grown accustomed to that kind of consumer choice, that kind of flow of information, is going to put up with socialism.

"This is the freedom generation, we just got to take the message of freedom to them."

With that in mind, Pence again turned his focus to the future, saying Republicans will be better served by looking ahead, not behind.

"Whatever the future holds for me and my incredible wife, I promise you we will cherish the support that we have from the people of Utah always, and we will never stop fighting to restore this nation to the ideals that have always made us strong and great and true," he said.

Pence is the second potential 2024 candidate to visit Utah in as many weeks, after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis addressed delegates at Utah's Republican Party convention last Saturday at Utah Valley University.

Bridger Beal-Cvetko covers Utah politics, Salt Lake County communities and breaking news for KSL.com. He is a graduate of Utah Valley University.

More here:
Former Vice President Mike Pence hints at presidential run in meeting with Utah leaders - KSL.com

28 April 2023

Image source, Getty Images

Mike Pence's testimony is a major milestone in the two-year criminal investigation

Former US Vice-President Mike Pence has testified as part of a criminal investigation into alleged efforts by Donald Trump to overturn his defeat in the 2020 election.

Mr Pence, 63, sat for more than seven hours before a federal grand jury in Washington DC, sources told the BBC's US partner CBS News.

He was issued with a subpoena to testify under oath earlier this year.

The questioning by prosecutors took place behind closed doors.

His appearance on Thursday came just hours after an appeals court rejected a last-ditch bid by Mr Trump's legal team to stop Mr Pence from testifying.

Mr Pence's lawyers had also sought unsuccessfully to challenge the subpoena, arguing that his role as president of the Senate during his time in office meant he had congressional immunity.

His eventual testimony, which had been sought for months, is a major milestone in the two-year investigation which is being led by special counsel Jack Smith, a former war crimes prosecutor who was appointed to the role by Attorney General Merrick Garland.

The investigation has been gathering evidence about whether Mr Trump and his allies broke federal law in their efforts to challenge the result of the 2020 election, which was won by President Joe Biden.

It is also investigating the US Capitol riot on 6 January 2021, when Mr Trump's supporters stormed the building in an effort to prevent the election result from being certified.

Mr Pence, who like all vice-presidents was also president of the Senate - a mostly ceremonial role - could in theory have derailed the final certification of the election result and delayed the transfer of power.

Mr Trump publicly pressured his vice-president to do so, and his refusal led him to lash out at Mr Pence.

Trump supporters then chanted "hang Mike Pence" as they stormed Congress and marauded through the corridors of the Capitol building as politicians, including Mr Pence, sheltered inside.

To play this content, please enable JavaScript, or try a different browser

Watch: New footage shows Speaker Pelosi during Jan 6 attack

Mr Pence is considered a key witness in the investigation and, while it is not immediately clear what he told the grand jury, prosecutors will likely have asked him about his interactions with Mr Trump and his team in the days and weeks leading up to the riot.

"We'll obey the law, we'll tell the truth," Mr Pence said in an interview with CBS on Sunday. "The story that I've been telling the American people all across the country... that'll be the story I tell in that setting."

Mr Pence has spoken publicly about the Capitol riot and the pressure he faced to challenge the election result. "President Trump is wrong. I had no right to overturn the election," he said in a speech in February.

In his memoir, So Help Me God, Mr Pence wrote that Mr Trump had attempted to pressure him into blocking the certification of the election result on the morning of the riot. "You'll go down as a wimp," the then-president apparently told Mr Pence.

He has also accused Mr Trump of endangering his family as well as others who were at the Capitol, saying history will hold him "accountable".

Mr Pence is reportedly considering a presidential bid of his own in 2024, which would see him challenge his former boss directly for the Republican nomination.

Mr Trump, who has already launched his bid to return to the White House, was in New Hampshire on Thursday for a campaign event. When asked by NBC News about Mr Pence's testimony, he commented: "I don't know what he said, but I have a lot of confidence in him."

The former president is facing other legal issues, including another federal investigation led by Mr Smith into the potential mishandling of classified documents.

There is also a separate investigation in Georgia into alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election result.

Read the rest here:
Mike Pence testifies in criminal probe of Trump and Capitol riot - BBC

M

ike Pence sits in a tall mahogany chair with leather cushioning, in the middle of a massive, LED screen-laden megachurch in downtown Dallas. Its a Sunday morning in January 2023 and Pence is wearing a crisp dark suit and perfectly Windsor-ed tie, fielding questions from First Baptist Dallas senior pastor, Robert Jeffress.

Jeffress is a Fox News regular whos spent the last seven years as former President Donald Trumps most prominent evangelical ally. The pastor spoke at Trump campaign events in Iowa before the 2016 primaries. He publicly defended Trump after the Access Hollywood tape came out. The First Baptist Dallas choir made national headlines in 2017 when they sang a hymn called Make America Great Again. And Trump himself visited this church the week of Christmas 2021, attracting a thunderous crowd and a throng of protesters.

Today is much more sedate and absent protesters. But both levels of the amphitheater-size sanctuary are pretty full for the 11 a.m. service. Jeffress gives Pence a glowing introduction and reminds his congregants that Pence is a great friend. In front of a live audience of thousands and a television-and-streaming audience of thousands more, Jeffress asks Pence what role faith should play in politics, and Pence says freedom of religion is not freedom from religion. This is a nation of faith.

Then Jeffress invokes the Old Testaments testing of Abraham and asks about Jan. 6.

Gallows had been built on the Capitol grounds. A noose had been attached at the gallows for your execution, Jeffress says. The Secret Service urged you and your family to leave for your own safety, and yet you refused to abandon your duty. What, Jeffress asks, gave Pence the courage to stand strong that day?

For most of the conversation, Pence has leaned back in his chair, smiling that close-lipped smile thats become his trademark. Its the same bulletproof smile he displayed as he stared adoringly at the president for four-plus years. His eyes have twinkled ever so slightly in the churchs studio-quality lighting. But after the Jan. 6 question Pence squints and nods in thought. He inhales deeply.

Mike Pence hasnt shied away from talking about Jan. 6, 2021, the day an angry mob erected gallows and ran through the halls of the Capitol chanting Hang Mike Pence! Others in the Trump orbit have tried to minimize or completely recast what happened that day, but Pence hasnt. Hes written about it, spoken about it, answered questions about it in interviews. The title of his book, So Help Me God, is a reference to his oath of office an oath he feels he was honoring that day, when he split with then-President Trump and presided over a joint session of Congress that officially counted the electoral college votes, formalizing the results of the 2020 presidential election.

What saw us through that day, Pence says, noting that his wife and daughter were with him at the Capitol, was Gods grace.

Theres a smattering of applause.

Pence reiterates that hes incredibly proud of the record of the Trump-Pence administration. He mentions the border, Israel, energy and the three Supreme Court justices that helped overturn Roe v. Wade which gets a larger applause.

Obviously the administration did not end well, Pence says. January 6 was a tragic day.

Pence hasnt said hes running for president in 2024 at least not officially. But in an interview with me, and interviews with other reporters, he certainly sounds like hes launching a presidential campaign. His book feels a lot like a traditional campaign book. Hes also been quietly flying around the country (hell be in Salt Lake City Friday), speaking to churches and business groups about his own story and everything he thinks is wrong with the Biden administration. These talks seem remarkably similar to stump speeches. And yes, at some point in nearly all of these places, someone mentions that day. And soon that day may loom even larger for him: In late April, he testified under oath about the conversations he had with Trump involving Trumps quest to overturn the 2020 election.

What Pence did or rather what he didnt do on Jan. 6 has created an amazingly peculiar political dilemma. Half the country has heard for two years that Pence had the ability to stop a rigged election but chose not to. The other half of the country, the half thats grateful Pence didnt try to halt democracy that day, isnt likely to forget that Pence partnered with and enabled Trump for the four years leading up to Jan. 6.

But Pence has something that no other potential Republican presidential candidate has. Pence has spent his entire career making his devout religious beliefs the center of his identity. The man absolutely cant be out-churched. And until relatively recently, that approach has had quite a bit of success in American politics.

Nadia Radic, for the Deseret News

If evangelical voters could go into a lab and create a political candidate, that candidate would probably come out looking and sounding like Mike Pence. For decades hes introduced himself to crowds by explaining that hes a Christian, a conservative and a Republican, always adding, in that order.

By all accounts, Pence is a genuine believer, a veteran trooper in Americas perpetual culture war, inspired by his evangelical faith and the business-friendly, nationalistic stylings of Ronald Reagan.

Pence grew up in small-town Indiana, one of six kids in a devoutly Irish-Catholic home. His mother, a precocious redhead, he tells people, was a homemaker. His father a combat veteran who raised my brothers and me like it was his last platoon, Pence calls him ran a chain of convenience stores and voted Democrat.

After attending a music festival in Kentucky billed as the Christian Woodstock, Pence was born again. As he tells it, on a rainy spring night in 1978, he felt called to stand up, find a pastor, and bow his head and accept Jesus Christ as his savior. A few years later, Pence went from a Jimmy Carter-supporting Democrat to a devoted Reagan acolyte.

While attending law school in Bloomington, Pence met his future wife, Karen, in church. Theyve been married 37 years and have three children and three young grandchildren. And nary an untoward personal scandal. In fact, hes been known to refer to his wife as Mother, though in the time Im around him I hear him talk about Karen often and he doesnt once call her that.

Pence first ran for office in 1988, when he was 29. His congressional campaign consisted of him bicycling around his district in athletic shorts and tennis shoes, chatting with anyone receptive to a conversation. He got the Republican nomination but lost in the general. Two years later he ran again, went shockingly negative in his ads and was caught using campaign funds to pay his mortgage and grocery bills which wasnt illegal at the time but is now. Pence lost that election by 19 points.

Still fighting the conservative culture war fight, he launched a talk-radio show, what he called Rush Limbaugh on decaf. He also started a political newsletter and regularly wrote op-eds that ran in newspapers across Indiana. His style was hokey and his arguments seem dated now. He opened each show with Greetings across the amber waves of grain. His hot takes at the time included a defense of the tobacco industry (smoking doesnt kill), arguments against early climate change agreements, and a demand that President Bill Clinton resign amid the Monica Lewinsky scandal. But Pence used this time to build a statewide audience and sharpen his religiously framed stances. When he ran for Congress again in 2000, he won easily.

On Capitol Hill, he championed defense spending, deregulation and traditional evangelical social values. He repeatedly voted to restrict abortion, to defund Planned Parenthood, and in strong support of Israel. He started rising in the ranks of Republican leadership and attracted the attention of Republican megadonors, including the Koch brothers. By 2012 he was contemplating a run for president but was reportedly convinced to run for governor of Indiana instead.

He campaigned as a business-friendly conservative, with a tone lifted directly from Reagan. Pences term as governor is remembered for signing his religious freedom legislation in 2015, just prior to the Supreme Courts ruling on same-sex marriage, that would have allowed business owners, like florists or cakebakers, to refuse services for gay customers. After businesses across the state objected, and Pence fumbled through an appearance on This Week with George Stephanopoulos, he eventually compromised, signing a watered-down version of the bill. By the early stages of the 2016 election cycle, Pences statewide approval rating was under 40%, and it looked like his political career might be over.

President Donald Trump listens as Vice President Mike Pence speaks about the coronavirus in the Rose Garden of the White House, April 27, 2020, in Washington. As Mike Pence approaches a likely 2024 run for president, hes opening up to audiences about the parts of his career before he served as Donald Trumps vice president. He hopes his 12 years in Congress and four years as Indiana governor will project the record of a conservative fighter.

Alex Brandon, Associated Press

Then came Donald Trump.

Pences religious-right bona fides made him the perfect running mate to shore up conservative voters concerned about Trumps probity. And it didnt take long for Pence to become Trumps most proficient advocate, the heavy hitter Trumps team unholstered for choice Sunday shows and heartland events. With his three decades of gladhanding and public piety, Pence could reassure supporters who were queasy over Trumps many scandals.

After the Access Hollywood tape became public, Pence said he was offended and cannot defend Trumps remarks. But in the same statement, Pence pointed out that the video was 11 years old and that Trump had expressed remorse and apologized to the American people. Pence also said he looked forward to Trump showing the nation what is in his heart. (Pences camp has also denied reports that he volunteered to step in at the top of the ticket if the party decided to dump Trump at the last second.)

After porn star Stormy Daniels alleged that Trump and his attorney Michael Cohen paid her $130,000 in hush money before the election, Pence called the accusations baseless. When Trump alleged large-scale voter fraud happening on and before election day in 2016, Pence echoed the sentiments with the couching of a clever attorney, saying, Voter fraud cannot be tolerated by anyone in this nation. After Trump said there were very fine people on both sides of a deadly clash at a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Pence told reporters that Trump had made it very clear that he condemns all forms of hate and violence.

Pence added, unsolicited, I truly believe that under President Trumps leadership, were gonna continue to see more unity in America.

But of course, Pence never really needed to say much. Just standing behind Trump, flashing that smile, Pence was implicitly telling millions of Americans that all of this all of the scandals and the shattering of norms and the crazy tweets it was all fine, actually.

President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence gesture at the 2020 Republican National Convention in Charlotte, N.C. on Aug. 24, 2020.

Andrew Harnik, Associated Press

Pence even joked about that earlier this year, at the white-tie Gridiron dinner in Washington, D.C. At his weekly lunches with the president, Pence told the crowd, Trump liked when Pence would sing him Wind Beneath My Wings specifically the phrase, Did you ever know that youre my hero?

Oh yeah, thats the other thing. Mike Pence is actually kind of funny. He might not write all of his own material, and his sense of humor is completely dad-joke-tastic, but Pence gets laughs. At that same Gridiron dinner, he quipped about his own piousness.

Im really not as uptight as many people think, he told the crowd. Theres this idea that Im some kind of religious nut. Im really not. Just ask my sons, Jedediah, Obadiah or Zechariah. His preferred pronouns, he added, are thou and thine.

And yet, despite the polished Republican resume, the culture-warrior cred, the old-school charisma and that strong handsome-grandpa energy thats done so well in conservative circles for decades, at the moment Pence is a long shot to win the presidency. In early Republican primary polling, Pence is usually around 6%-7%. When Atlantic writer McKay Coppins sat in on focus groups of Republicans earlier this year, he found that the participants almost universally disdained Pence.

Hes only gonna get the vote from his family, one participant said. And Im not even sure if they like him.

Another participant said that Pence just needs to go away.

Meanwhile, Trump is still at the top of those same polls, even after being arrested in April for his alleged involvement in the Stormy Daniels hush-money scandal.

So, I ask Pence how he plans to get Trump supporters some of whom were chanting Hang Mike Pence to now cast a ballot for him.

Look, he tells me, I think the failed policies of the Biden administration at home and abroad, and the radical left wing policies of the Democratic Party today, are going to be a great unifying factor for the standard-bearer of the Republican Party.

Pence tells me that one of the enduring lessons from the 2022 midterms, where Republicans underperformed expectations, comes down to focusing on the future.

Candidates that were focused on the future did well, he says. Candidates that were focused on the past or relitigating the past did not fare as well.

I ask him how he addresses the people whove been told over and over for two years that Pence had the ability to stop a rigged election but chose not to.

With the truth, Pence says. The facts. Thats why I speak as openly as I do about it.

Vice President Mike Pence speaks during the first day of the Republican National Convention on Aug. 24, 2020, in Charlotte, N.C.

Travis Dove, The New York Times via AP

Most Americans dont understand how close to a possible coup this country might have come. But Mike Pence knows.

For weeks, Trump had been telling anyone who would listen that the 2020 election was stolen, and that Pence had the power to overturn the results by refusing to certify the count. Trump told Pence himself this on Christmas Day, when Pence made his annual call to wish the president and first lady a Merry Christmas.

During his rally on Jan. 6, 2021, Trump addressed Pence directly, though the vice president was already at the Capitol.

Mike Pence, I hope youre gonna stand up for the good of our Constitution and for the good of our country, Trump told his supporters. And if youre not, Im going to be very disappointed in you, I will tell you right now.

When rioters broke into the Capitol an hour or so later, Pences security detail moved him out of the Senate chamber and into a small, seldom-used ceremonial office reserved for the vice president. Its the room where Vice President Henry Wilson died, where Vice President Harry Truman was sworn in as president.

Eight minutes after Pence was evacuated from the Senate floor, Trump tweeted about Pence:

Mike Pence didnt have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution, giving States a chance to certify a corrected set of facts, not the fraudulent or inaccurate ones which they were asked to previously certify. USA demands the truth!

A White House security official later told Congress that at one point members of the vice presidents detail felt so endangered that they were screaming over the radio and that there were calls to say goodbye to family members.

Amid all that, Pence and his family were moved from the ceremonial office to a subterranean loading dock beneath the Capitol. Pences Secret Service team told him to get into the armored limousine waiting there. Thats when Pence uttered six words that very well may have changed the course of history.

Im not getting in that car.

Whether you admired the way Pence stood by Trump through all manner of controversy or you thought Pence was a compliant captive, smiling with adoration, Jan. 6, 2021 was the day Mike Pence broke free. And the entire day is encapsulated by this incredibly dramatic moment standing next to that car.

I wanted to know what that moment felt like.

In this image from video released by the House Select Committee, Vice President Mike Pence looks at a phone from his secure evacuation location on Jan. 6 as House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol holds a hearing Thursday, June 16, 2022, on Capitol Hill in Washington.

House Select Committee via Associated Press

Hes said repeatedly that he wasnt afraid. In his book, he says he was angry and indignant about the way the invaders desecrated the seat of our democracy and dishonored the patriotism of millions of our supporters. But I still wanted to know what it felt like to stand next to that armored vehicle and refuse to enter. I wanted to know what he thought might happen if he had gotten in.

Its the first thing I ask about when Pence and I sit down for an interview in an office at the back of a church in rural, central Louisiana. Its late March and still chilly in the piney woods just west of the Mississippi River. Pence is wearing another dark blue suit, an impeccably starched white shirt and a sleek silver tie perfectly tied. Hes 63, 13 years younger than Trump, and with that helmet of closely cropped platinum hair, Pence could pass for early 50s. In person, hes also warmer, more congenial than he can come across on TV.

In our time together, Ill ask him if he thinks he enabled Trump, and if he thinks that led to what happened on Jan. 6. And because I cant help myself, Ill ask about the fly that landed on his head during the vice-presidential debate in 2020 and became perhaps the most ubiquitous meme in an administration full of them.

But first I ask Pence what he thinks wouldve happened if hed gotten into that car.

He nods slightly, staying silent for nearly 10 seconds before answering.

I leave that to others, he tells me, squinting thoughtfully. Secret Service, understandably, wanted to get me out of the building. The doors in the car were open, and they told me they wanted me to hold in the car, and I told them I wasnt getting in the car.

Pence says he explained to his detail: You close that 200-pound door and somebody back from headquarters tells them, Get the vice president out of the building

Pence cuts himself off before he finishes that thought.

Ive had a detail since I was governor of Indiana, he tells me. Their job is to protect you. My job was to support and defend the Constitution, which I was determined to do by staying at my post in the building.

I ask him how often he thinks about that day. He laughs a little.

Not as often as some people do, he says. Im an out-the-windshield guy, not a rear-view mirror guy.

Before introducing Pence to the congregation at Philadelphia Baptist Church in Deville, Louisiana, senior pastor Philip Robertson jokes about what a special occasion it is to have him.

There are those who never thought it possible that a former vice president of the United States would ever visit Deville, Louisiana, the pastor says. Some might have even said that Hell would freeze over before that happened. Well guess what? Its going to be 26 degrees tonight in Central, Louisiana.

As the audience snickers, Robertson adds an Amen. Then he welcomes Pence to the pulpit, calling him a brother in Christ.

Its a Sunday in mid-March. This place is much smaller and more casual than the church in Dallas. There are plenty of jeans and caps and the sanctuary is a little dated. Pence takes the stage and thanks Robertson, calling him Brother Philip. Then Pence venerates the churchs 150-year ministry.

Im a little bit humbled to stand at a podium that is so well-served, Pence says. But Ill do my best. He adds, I am consoled by the fact that I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.

Pence tells the audience about his life since leaving office, painting a portrait of an idyllic existence back in Indiana. He makes a few references to the Trump-Pence administration and like always gets big cheers when he mentions the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade but Pence mostly uses the time to share his testimony: his decision to dedicate his life to Christ and how its shaped his public service.

Vice President Mike Pence talks with Westkirk Church Senior Pastor Michael Mudlaff, right, and Temple Bnai Jeshurun Rabbi David Kaufman following a meeting with local faith leaders to encourage them to resume in-person church services in a responsible fashion in response to the coronavirus pandemic on May 8, 2020, in Urbandale, Iowa.

Charlie Neibergall, Associated Press

My heart was broken by what had been done for me on the cross, he says as applause builds.

In all, Pence talks for about 20 minutes. Hes a compelling storyteller, but he also knows the cadences, the verbiage of this world. He effortlessly weaves Old and New Testament references throughout the talk. At the end of his testimony, he gets a roaring ovation. He nods, squinting and flashing that smile.

After the service, the line to get a book signed stretches out of the back of the hall and across the chilly parking lot. The crowd has been told not to hold the line up for photos, but plenty of people ask anyway and Pence obliges every time. He also makes a few seconds of small talk with each person as they come by his table. He shakes hands. He asks about kids. He thanks veterans and first responders for their service.

When a little girl tells Pence that today is her 10th birthday, he quickly takes out a small piece of stationary with The Vice President printed across the top and draws a simple cartoon of himself the smile, the tie, the pensive brow and a speech bubble that reads HAPPY 10th BIRTHDAY RYLEE!

This is how Pence hopes to convince people of all stripes to vote for him. Events like this, in big cities and small towns across America, changing minds one room at a time. Maybe enough people will see him in person and hear the earnestness in his voice. Maybe theyll conclude that Pence has been a remarkably savvy politician, willing to endure humiliation in order to enact the type of conservative agenda the right has been dreaming of since Pence was in college. Maybe some of the people he encounters as he tours the country will wonder if God put Mike Pence in the White House to steer Donald Trump in the right direction then put him in the Capitol that day to protect our nation.

On the other hand, many argue that Pence enabled Trump for years before finally splitting with him ahead of Jan. 6, that he used his religious credentials as cover for his running mate. Pence supported Trump despite multiple accusations of sexual harassment. Despite Trump repeatedly questioning the legitimacy of elections for years.

I ask Pence if he thinks that standing by Trump through all of that and more might have actually led to Jan. 6, 2021 and if that makes him culpable or responsible at all for what happened that day.

Im incredibly proud of the record of the Trump-Pence administration, he tells me. Prior to the disagreement that came to a head in the days leading up to January 6, the president and I had a close working relationship. And despite our differences in personal style, we were both working on the same agenda.

Pence reiterates that hes proud of his partnership with Trump.

At the end of the day, it did not end well, he says. But I believe that we made our stand clear and we saw our way through to do our duty that day. And I trust those days to the judgment of history for me and all those involved.

A fly lands on the head of Vice President Mike Pence during the vice presidential debate Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2020, at Kingsbury Hall on the campus of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City.

Justin Sullivan, Associated Press

Before we part that day at the church in Deville, theres something else I have to know. Its a question Ive thought about asking since I learned I was going to meet with him.

The fly.

During the vice presidential debate in 2020, as Pence sat across the table from then-Sen. Kamala Harris, a massive fly landed on his head. And stayed there. For what felt to viewers like hours. (It was actually about two minutes.) And Pence never swatted at it once.

The fly became an instant and enduring meme, easily the standout moment from all of the 2020 debates. The fly also became a Rorschach test. Some people saw Pence as stalwart, unflappable, focused. Other people saw Pence as a robot, so dedicated to his political mission that hed somehow resist one of the most basic human reactions.

So, I ask the former vice president of the United States about the fly.

Read more:
Mike Pence on religion: Will the faith of Mike Pence win voters? - Deseret News