DES MOINES, Iowa—Former Vice President Mike Pence took the stage at a town hall meeting to define himself as a principled leader who has the experience and character to dig the country out of domestic difficulties and reestablish it as the champion of freedom on the world stage.
The candidate, standing at centerstage, outlined mostly unsurprising Republican positions on a range of domestic and international issues and responded to questions from moderator Dana Bash of CNN and members of the audience.
Some 125 Iowa voters and guests attended the 90-minute event at Grand View University on June 7.
Yet the unseen presence in the room was former President Donald Trump, who was named or referred to some 35 times during the 90-minute event.
Pence displayed more civility than toughness, which may have been by design, yet stated unequivocal positions on issues including the economy, Ukraine, gender transition for children, climate change, and mass shootings.
The former vice president politely distanced himself from Trump on several policies but, in the end, gave the strongest criticism of Trump he has offered to date, setting the stage for the first-ever campaign pitting a former vice president against his former running mate.
Pence vs Trump
Bash and some audience members questioned Pence on issues related to Trump, including whether he would confront the former president on his role in the events of Jan. 6, whether he would consider pardoning Trump if convicted of a crime, the alignment of their views on immigration policy, and even whether Pence would support Trump as the Republican nominee in 2024.
Pence at first tried to redirect attention to kitchen-table issues that distinguish him from President Joe Biden.
“I’m running because I think this country is in a lot of trouble; I think President Joe Biden and the Democrats have weakened America at home and abroad. Literally, we have a crisis at our border. We have inflation at a 40-year high. We have a crime wave in our cities. And frankly, that disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan has emboldened the enemies of freedom around the world,” Pence said.
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