Mike Pence: Almost as bad as Trump but he might not get us killed

[AmazonGrace]

 

[Howl]

Just saw Pence's chronically adoring looks at Lord Dampnut referred to as Pence eye f**king Trump.

[AmazonGrace]

On second thought, Pence might get you killed. 

 

[AmazonGrace]

 

[fraurosena]

This could just as well have gone into the gun violence or hypocrisy thread, but this thread came up first in the list, so here it goes.

Hold on to your eyeballs, cuz they're either gonna roll or pop.

The NRA is banning guns during Mike Pence’s upcoming convention speech

Quote

Vice President Mike Pence is scheduled to appear at a National Rifle Associationconvention in Texas in early May, and to help ensure his safety, the NRA is laying down a ground rule that has many of its critics crying foul.

The NRA said it’s banning guns on the premises prior to and during his speech, despite the organization’s broader insistence that adding more guns to an environment makes things safer. According to the NRA’s official web page for the event, firearms―along with other weapons, like knives―will not be allowed while Pence is in attendance.

“Due to the attendance of the Vice President of the United States, the U.S. Secret Service will be responsible for event security at the NRA-ILA Leadership Forum,” the site says. “As a result, firearms and firearm accessories, knives or weapons of any kind will be prohibited in the forum prior to and during his attendance.”

This news is stirring up controversy, owing in large part to the NRA’s almost universal resistance to gun bans and “gun-free zones” and NRA vice president Wayne LaPierre’s regular praising of so-called “good guys with guns.” In particular, many of the student activist survivors of the Parkland shooting reacted to the news with disbelief and condemnation, including Matt Deitsch and Cameron Kasky.

 

Pence will be addressing the Dallas conference on May 4. As is common whenever the vice president is giving a speech or making a public appearance, he’ll be guarded by members of the U.S. Secret Service. In the past, NRA representatives, including LaPierre, have regularly insisted that gun-free zones are dangerous, as they provide “soft targets” for mass shooters.

 

[AmazonGrace]

 

[Cartmann99]

I didn't hear Pence's NRA speech, but I don't think I missed much:

 

[GreyhoundFan]

George Will is far more conservative then me, but he writes beautifully and has no love for this administration: "Trump is no longer the worst person in government"

Spoiler

Donald Trump, with his feral cunning, knew. The oleaginous Mike Pence, with his talent for toadyism and appetite for obsequiousness, could, Trump knew, become America’s most repulsive public figure. And Pence, who has reached this pinnacle by dethroning his benefactor, is augmenting the public stock of useful knowledge. Because his is the authentic voice of today’s lickspittle Republican Party, he clarifies this year’s elections: Vote Republican to ratify groveling as governing.

Last June, a Trump Cabinet meeting featured testimonials offered to Dear Leader by his forelock-tugging colleagues. His chief of staff, Reince Priebus, caught the spirit of the worship service by thanking Trump for the “blessing” of being allowed to serve him. The hosannas poured forth from around the table, unredeemed by even a scintilla of insincerity. Priebus was soon deprived of his blessing, as was Tom Price. Before Price’s ecstasy of public service was truncated because of his incontinent enthusiasm for charter flights, he was the secretary of health and human services who at the Cabinet meeting said, “I can’t thank you enough for the privileges you’ve given me.” The vice president chimed in but saved his best riff for a December Cabinet meeting when, as The Post’s Aaron Blake calculated, Pence praised Trump once every 12 seconds for three minutes: “I’m deeply humbled. . . . ” Judging by the number of times Pence announces himself “humbled,” he might seem proud of his humility, but that is impossible because he is conspicuously devout and pride is a sin.

Between those two Cabinet meetings, Pence and his retinue flew to Indiana for the purpose of walking out of an Indianapolis Colts football game, thereby demonstrating that football players kneeling during the national anthem are intolerable to someone of Pence’s refined sense of right and wrong. Which brings us to his Arizona salute last week to Joe Arpaio, who was sheriff of Maricopa County until in 2016 voters wearied of his act.

Noting that Arpaio was in his Tempe audience, Pence, oozing unctuousness from every pore, called Arpaio “another favorite,” professed himself “honored” by Arpaio’s presence, and praised him as “a tireless champion of . . . the rule of law.” Arpaio, a grandstanding, camera-chasing bully and darling of the thuggish right, is also a criminal, convicted of contempt of court for ignoring a federal judge’s order to desist from certain illegal law enforcement practices. Pence’s performance occurred eight miles from the home of Sen. John McCain, who could teach Pence — or perhaps not — something about honor.

Henry Adams said that “practical politics consists in ignoring facts,” but what was the practicality in Pence’s disregard of the facts about Arpaio? His pandering had no purpose beyond serving Pence’s vocation, which is to ingratiate himself with his audience of the moment. The audience for his praise of Arpaio was given to chanting “Build that wall!” and applauded Arpaio, who wears Trump’s pardon like a boutonniere.

Hoosiers, of whom Pence is one, sometimes say that although Abraham Lincoln was born in Kentucky and flourished in Illinois, he spent his formative years — December 1816 to March 1830 — in Indiana, which he left at age 21. Be that as it may, on Jan. 27, 1838, Lincoln, then 28, delivered his first great speech, to the Young Men’s Lyceum in Springfield. Less than three months earlier, Elijah Lovejoy, an abolitionist newspaper editor in Alton, Ill., 67 miles from Springfield, was murdered by a pro-slavery mob. Without mentioning Lovejoy — it would have been unnecessary — Lincoln lamented that throughout America, “so lately famed for love of law and order,” there was a “mobocratic spirit” among “the vicious portion of [the] population.” So, “let reverence for the laws . . . become the political religion of the nation.” Pence, one of evangelical Christians’ favorite pin-ups, genuflects at various altars, as the mobocratic spirit and the vicious portion require.

It is said that one cannot blame people who applaud Arpaio and support his rehabilitators (Trump, Pence, et al.), because, well, globalization or health-care costs or something. Actually, one must either blame them or condescend to them as lacking moral agency. Republicans silent about Pence have no such excuse.

There will be negligible legislating by the next Congress, so ballots cast this November will be most important as validations or repudiations of the harmonizing voices of Trump, Pence, Arpaio and the like. Trump is what he is, a floundering, inarticulate jumble of gnawing insecurities and not-at-all compensating vanities, which is pathetic. Pence is what he has chosen to be, which is horrifying.

George despises Pencey as much as we do.

[GreyhoundFan]

Oh FFS: "Pence says it’s time for special counsel to ‘wrap up’ Russia investigation"

Spoiler

Vice President Pence on Thursday urged special counsel Robert S. Mueller III to bring his investigation into Russian election interference to a close, saying “it’s time to wrap it up.”

Pence’s remarks echoed calls by President Trump and his lawyers, who have argued that there is no evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia and that Mueller is now seeking to trap Trump into committing perjury about his actions related to the investigation.

Pence was asked Thursday by NBC’s Andrea Mitchell if he believes the investigation is a “hoax,” as Trump has repeatedly characterized it.

“Our administration has been fully cooperating with the special counsel, and we’ll continue to,” Pence said. “What I think is that it’s been about a year since this investigation began. Our administration has provided more than a million documents. We’ve fully cooperated in it, and in the interest of the country, I think it’s time to wrap it up.”

Pence added: “And I would very respectfully encourage the special counsel and his team to bring their work to completion.”

Pence was interviewed at Joint Base Andrews, where he and Trump early Thursday greeted three Americans returning from North Korea after being held in custody.

Pence declined to comment on Michael Cohen, Trump’s personal lawyer, who is at the center of a widening investigation of his business practices.

“What I can say is that that private matter is something that I don’t have any knowledge about,” Pence said. “I think the White House issued a statement saying the same.”

I liked this response:

 

[AnywhereButHere]

Oh please, Pence. As my husband says - it took almost 2 years to wrap up the investigation into Nixon, and that was only a bit of domestic B&E when you break it down.

This whole shitshow is a domestic and international, knot tied, octopus. Can't be untangled in a few hours.

[fraurosena]

So tell me, Pencey-poo, how do you square the presidunce's multitudinous adulterous affairs with your sanctimonious religiosity?

As to what could be a bigger deal? Hmmm, let me think... could it be the destruction of democracy happening at the hands of the administration you are a part of? The hollowing out of healthcare? The persecution of minorities? The attacks on free press? The intervention of Russia in elections?

Nah... adultery is so much worse, isn't it?

[Audrey2]

3 hours ago, fraurosena said:

So tell me, Pencey-poo, how do you square the presidunce's multitudinous adulterous affairs with your sanctimonious religiosity?

 

Why, it's Melanie's fault, of course, for not being by Donny's side 24/7 like Mother Pence is by Mike's. No way could adultry ever be a man's fault.

Edited May 11, 2018 by Audrey2

[onekidanddone]

1 hour ago, Audrey2 said:

Why, it's Melanie's fault, of course, for not being by Donny's side 24/7 like Mother Pence is by Mike's. No way could adultry ever be a man's fault.

So true. Just ask Josh Duggar.

[Myomy]

I am still waiting to hear more about an FBI (Washington DC office) raid in Annapolis, MD on a GOP consulting firm back in May 2017.  I remember reading at that time that supposedly Pence and Ryan had ties to that consulting firm.

[GreyhoundFan]

1 hour ago, Myomy said:

I am still waiting to hear more about an FBI (Washington DC office) raid in Annapolis, MD on a GOP consulting firm back in May 2017.  I remember reading at that time that supposedly Pence and Ryan had ties to that consulting firm.

Me too, since Ken Cuccinelli was involved. I despise him as much as I despise Dumpy and Pencey.

[fraurosena]

Can I just take a minute to to thank our sweet Rufus that Pencey-poo has finally come out of the shadows and is showing his true colors to the world?

Here’s another example:

Pence says that selling access to the president is ‘a private matter’.

(phone = no quote)

 

[Howl]

Yes, that Pence is a sly one.  A commenter on that article said this: 

Spoiler

My spidey sense is tingling and tells me Pence is getting nervous. He was Manafort's choice for VP, he was the key man linking the Trump campaign to the Koch brothers and Robert Mercer, and he was head of the transition team. It wouldn't surprise me to find him implicated in nasty stuff. One wonders if Papadopoulos, Flynn, or Cohen will have stories to tell about him when they start singing. It's notable that Mueller's team has chosen *not* to interview him. Prosecutors on a case such as this save the biggest and dirtiest fish for last.

Of course this is some random guy on the internet, but I did not realize that  Pence was picked by Manafort and that Pence was Mercer and Koch connected.  Off to do some google.

Pence is bound to be slimed at some point, because Trump, but I suspect that there is a teflon cone of protection around him so nothing sticks.  He needs to at least seem clean when he gets the GOP pres nomination in the future. 

 

 

[Cartmann99]

On 5/11/2018 at 8:53 AM, onekidanddone said:

So true. Just ask Josh Duggar.

Forgive me as I only read Duggar stuff when something so huge happens that even people who don't follow them are talking about it. Has he been caught being unfaithful again, or is this just in reference to the crap that went on a few years back while he was working for the Patriot Jesus Freedom Family Guns Values group?

[onekidanddone]

5 hours ago, Cartmann99 said:

Forgive me as I only read Duggar stuff when something so huge happens that even people who don't follow them are talking about it. Has he been caught being unfaithful again, or is this just in reference to the crap that went on a few years back while he was working for the Patriot Jesus Freedom Family Guns Values group?

No new news as far as I know. I was just remembering how the Gothard way blames the wife if the husband strays.

Edited May 13, 2018 by onekidanddone

[fraurosena]

How I hope that it will come true that both administrations end the same. Except I don't want this particular VP to become president after...

[Cartmann99]

Pence gave a commencement speech yesterday, and one of the topics in his speech was religion:

Spoiler

 

 

 

Video of Pence's entire speech:

I'm not finding a transcript, but here's an article about Hillsdale College and Pence's visit:

Quote

For a school that doesn’t take any federal aid, Hillsdale College is the subject of increasing federal interest among high-profile Republican elected officials and conservatives.

Vice President Mike Pence’s Saturday commencement speech, in which he called the college “a beacon of liberty and American ideals,” arguably is proof of such attention. Pence spoke for roughly 15 minutes at Hillsdale’s 166th commencement and called the school’s president, Larry Arnn, a friend and mentor.

“We live in a time when too many disregard that wisdom of the past that Dr. Arnn spoke about so eloquently, but here you’ve been grounded in the traditions and teachings that are our greatest inheritance in America,” Pence said.

Pence’s visit is the latest of federal nods toward the small liberal arts college in south Michigan. The college hosted Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas two years ago, its president last year reportedly was considered for U.S. education secretary and the school was at the center of a federal tax break debate in 2017.

In an effort to avoid federal regulations and interference, Hillsdale College accepts no federal funding, one of the hallmarks that sets it apart among conservative supporters, said Matthew Spalding, associate vice president for Hillsdale.

That may be why Pence agreed to speak there in the first place, Spalding said.

“Hillsdale is a well-known, but historically serious school that stands for the independent thinking and teaching of ideas that he recognizes at the heart of American constitutionalism,” Spalding said.

Founded in 1844, the college has about 1,400 students and a satellite campus in Washington D.C. Since it takes no federal funding the school funds scholarships for students primarily through an endowment, the total of which recently stood at about $354 million.

The school said 367 students graduated on Saturday, including the college’s first ever PhD recipients.

Though it’s size is small, the attention it’s garnered over the years is not.

Besides Pence, notable speakers there include Thomas in 2016, former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in 1994, and former President Ronald Reagan in 1977.

Hillsdale leaders are no stranger to the national political scene either.

Arnn, a leader in banning affirmative action in California in the 1990s, endorsed and stayed loyal to Trump during the 2016 election. And Trump, in turn, reportedly considered Arnn for education secretary, but settled instead on Grand Rapids area school choice advocate and philanthropist Betsy DeVos.

Arnn drew flak in 2013 when, during a hearing on the state’s adoption of the common core curriculum, he referred to minority students as “dark ones.” Arnn later apologized for the comment, which was made while he was explaining the state’s interest in the school’s diversity.

Late last year, the school came under national scrutiny when a Republican senator proposed a carveout in the tax package that would exempt certain colleges that don’t receive federal funds from paying a new tax on investment income. Democrats complained that Hillsdale College would be the only school in the U.S. to benefit from the exemption and blocked the provision in December.

But the final version lifted the endowment amount that would trigger the tax on investment income, again exempting Hillsdale College, as well as several other schools.

Pence’s visit came a few days after DeVos signaled she could relax some federal regulations on funding for religious colleges and universities, capitalizing on a Supreme Court decision that restricted states from denying some aid to religious institutions. The Supreme Court case involved a Missouri preschool run by a Lutheran church that had been denied publicly funded tire scraps for its playground.

The education department said the eligibility of faith-based institutions or activities would be reviewed to “reduce or eliminate” some burdens and restrictions.

Hillsdale is considered a Christian school, Spalding said, but likely wouldn’t be impacted by DeVos’ policy because of its refusal to accept federal aid.

DeVos at times has been linked to the school through her brother, Erik Prince. Prince, the founder of the private security company Blackwater, is a graduate of Hillsdale.

He’s not the only notable graduate from the institution.

In February, Trump nominated Hillsdale graduate Joseph Cella to serve as ambassador to Fiji. Cella, 48, of Augusta Twp., also led the Trump campaign’s Catholic advisory council during 2016 campaign.

Michigan Supreme Court Justice David Viviano and his six siblings also graduated from the school. “It’s been a big part of our family over the years,” he said.

Viviano said he’s not surprised by the fact that people like Pence and Thomas have chosen to speak at the campus. He said the college’s consistent adherence to the Constitution and its independent nature show “that the federal government doesn’t have to control everything.”

“Those are the things Hillsdale has always been talking about,” Viviano said. “I think at different times in history people are more interested in listening.”

Hillsdale alumnus Aric Nesbitt agreed. A former State Representative running for state Senate, Nesbitt said the college instills a sense of civic duty among students.

“They are making an impact and a difference in the public sphere, in government and in politics,” Nesbitt said. “They (graduates) may not all be running for office…but there’s a lot of folks behind the scenes, whether its staff, or think tanks, or public policy, or activists.”

Take for example, Josh Przygocki, one of Saturday’s graduates who will work on Nesbitt’s campaign this summer.

Przygocki decided on Hillsdale because he had an interest in politics and Hillsdale is well known for as much in conservative circles. Pence’s visit, he said, is further proof of that recognition.

“As much as they distance themselves from federal politics by refusing to take federal aid, I think the school is kind of inadvertently involving itself in that sphere,” he said.

 

[AmazonGrace]

He could be right, a lot more people probably start their day praying now (oh my God what did the President do now?)

[fraurosena]

Oh Pencey-poo, may I respectfully beg to differ?

Americans with no religion greatly outnumber white evangelicals

 

[GreyhoundFan]

Dumpy doesn't like being overshadowed: "'Trump puts Pence in a corner"

Spoiler

President Donald Trump wasn’t planning to attend the recent National Rifle Association convention – that is, until he learned that Vice President Mike Pence would be giving the keynote address.

That led to a change of plans in the West Wing, according to two people familiar with the arrangement, and nearly a week after the NRA announced Pence would speak, the president was added to the schedule to speak moments after Pence.

It wasn’t the first time Trump has changed his plans to one-up the veep. It was originally Pence, not Trump, who planned to travel to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. But upon seeing who else would be attending, Trump decided to make the trip himself instead, bumping Pence off the schedule, according to a person familiar with the matter. A White House official said that neither scheduling decision was based on the vice president’s plans.

And Trump is elbowing Pence out in other, smaller, ways: on Tuesday, the anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony List announced Trump would be headlining their annual Washington gala this year, after Pence gave the keynote address last year. An official said that plan was weeks in the making.

From the start, the former Indiana governor has avoided criticizing Trump or even disagreeing with him publicly, and has silently stepped aside when Trump has decided the spotlight should be his—so much so that the conservative columnist George Will recently accused him of “groveling.” Pence has played the role of loyal surrogate, enthusiastic cheerleader and constant defender, calling on special counsel Robert Mueller to wrap up his investigation and dismissing questions swirling around Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, as a “private matter.”

And Pence’s team has worked assiduously to dispel any rumors that Pence might be harboring his own ambitions for the Oval Office, even as Pence hired a political operator as his chief of staff and formed a leadership PAC to support Republican congressional candidates.

But that hasn’t stopped the president from going out of his way to make sure Pence stays in his shadow.

“It was always pretty apparent that Pence had a role and that role was to be subservient to Trump,” said a former White House official who also served on the campaign. “Pence should be not seen and not heard and kind of put away in a corner and used as needed.”

The vice president has in recent months taken a starring role on the campaign trail, promoting the Republican tax reform bill for America First Policies, Trump’s issue-advocacy group.

But on Tuesday, Trump’s first campaign manager and frequent adviser Corey Lewandowski announced he’ll be joining Pence’s own political action committee, Great America. “Proud to be joining the Great America PAC. @realDonaldTrump and @MikePenceVP continue to fulfill the Camapign Promises they made to Make America Great Again!” Lewandowski tweeted. “The Rep’s will expand majorities in the Senate and hold the House to keep America moving forward.”

The PAC, which finances Pence’s travel around the country to stump for GOP candidates and cuts checks to favored members of Congress and governors, has been viewed by some as a vehicle for Pence to pursue his own ambitions beyond the vice presidency. Lewandowski’s move, which was first reported by Fox News, puts one of the original Trump loyalists at the heart of Pence’s political camp.

“This is all in preparation for the re-elect,” said Marty Obst, a top Pence advisor who oversees the PAC “Our goal is to support the president’s agenda, support candidates who do the same. That’s the whole purpose of the leadership PAC.”

The first signs of tensions emerged in recent weeks when it was revealed that Pence’s doctor, Jennifer Peña, was among the more than 20 people who spoke with the Senate Veterans Affairs committee about concerns about the conduct of Ronny Jackson, Trump’s White House doctor, who subsequently withdrew him nomination to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs.

But Pence’s team quickly sought to demonstrate fealty to Trump. Peña, they noted, was assigned to him by the White House Medical Unit, and was not a handpicked member of Pence’s staff. Days after Jackson withdrew his nomination, Peña resigned.

Strain, or the illusion of it, between the president and vice president has been a near-permanent feature in Washington, with Barack Obama and Joe Biden’s unusually close relationship being the exception that proved the rule. Vice President Dick Cheney was seen as a hawkish puppeteer in George W. Bush’s White House, and was marginalized as Bush’s presidency wore on. Al Gore famously sought to distance himself from Bill Clinton during the 2000 presidential race in the wake of Clinton’s scandalous involvement with Monica Lewinsky.

Pence toyed with making a 2016 presidential run but announced in May 2015 he’d sit the race out, a month before Trump declared his candidacy. The vice president played a key role in Trump’s failed effort to repeal Obamacare as well as in the successful tax bill push.

He has so far remained clear of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election – and was cast as a victim of former national security adviser Michael Flynn’s lies about contacts with Russians before Flynn’s firing in February 2017.

“Mike Pence, while having a political future, has been 100 percent loyal to Donald Trump, which may or may not present Pence issues down the road,” said Ari Fleischer, former press secretary to Bush. “What Mike Pence wisely recognizes is his wagon is hitched to Donald Trump no matter what.”

With that in mind, he said, it only makes sense for Pence to be as ardent of a supporter of Trump’s agenda as possible. “A successful Trump presidency will put Mike Pence in a relatively strong position,” Fleischer said. “An unsuccessful presidency for Donald Trump will likely doom him.”

But Pence could face a challenge in the near future as Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain, who is battling brain cancer, is expected to request, according to reports, that Pence attend his funeral rather than the president, who insulted McCain’s war record early in his candidacy and more recently has done nothing to disavow comments made by a staffer dismissing McCain as a result of his terminal illness.

Seeing Pence warmly welcomed by someone who snubbed him could trigger Trump’s anger – or, more likely, send him on an unrelated Twitter rant to draw the attention back to himself.

“Knowing the president somewhat, I do not think Trump thinks anyone overshadows him,” Mary Matalin, a former counselor to Vice President Dick Cheney, said in an email to POLITICO. “And he is right about that.”

 

[WiseGirl]

22 minutes ago, GreyhoundFan said:

Dumpy doesn't like being overshadowed: "'Trump puts Pence in a corner"

  Reveal hidden contents

President Donald Trump wasn’t planning to attend the recent National Rifle Association convention – that is, until he learned that Vice President Mike Pence would be giving the keynote address.

That led to a change of plans in the West Wing, according to two people familiar with the arrangement, and nearly a week after the NRA announced Pence would speak, the president was added to the schedule to speak moments after Pence.

It wasn’t the first time Trump has changed his plans to one-up the veep. It was originally Pence, not Trump, who planned to travel to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. But upon seeing who else would be attending, Trump decided to make the trip himself instead, bumping Pence off the schedule, according to a person familiar with the matter. A White House official said that neither scheduling decision was based on the vice president’s plans.

And Trump is elbowing Pence out in other, smaller, ways: on Tuesday, the anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony List announced Trump would be headlining their annual Washington gala this year, after Pence gave the keynote address last year. An official said that plan was weeks in the making.

From the start, the former Indiana governor has avoided criticizing Trump or even disagreeing with him publicly, and has silently stepped aside when Trump has decided the spotlight should be his—so much so that the conservative columnist George Will recently accused him of “groveling.” Pence has played the role of loyal surrogate, enthusiastic cheerleader and constant defender, calling on special counsel Robert Mueller to wrap up his investigation and dismissing questions swirling around Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, as a “private matter.”

And Pence’s team has worked assiduously to dispel any rumors that Pence might be harboring his own ambitions for the Oval Office, even as Pence hired a political operator as his chief of staff and formed a leadership PAC to support Republican congressional candidates.

But that hasn’t stopped the president from going out of his way to make sure Pence stays in his shadow.

“It was always pretty apparent that Pence had a role and that role was to be subservient to Trump,” said a former White House official who also served on the campaign. “Pence should be not seen and not heard and kind of put away in a corner and used as needed.”

The vice president has in recent months taken a starring role on the campaign trail, promoting the Republican tax reform bill for America First Policies, Trump’s issue-advocacy group.

But on Tuesday, Trump’s first campaign manager and frequent adviser Corey Lewandowski announced he’ll be joining Pence’s own political action committee, Great America. “Proud to be joining the Great America PAC. @realDonaldTrump and @MikePenceVP continue to fulfill the Camapign Promises they made to Make America Great Again!” Lewandowski tweeted. “The Rep’s will expand majorities in the Senate and hold the House to keep America moving forward.”

The PAC, which finances Pence’s travel around the country to stump for GOP candidates and cuts checks to favored members of Congress and governors, has been viewed by some as a vehicle for Pence to pursue his own ambitions beyond the vice presidency. Lewandowski’s move, which was first reported by Fox News, puts one of the original Trump loyalists at the heart of Pence’s political camp.

“This is all in preparation for the re-elect,” said Marty Obst, a top Pence advisor who oversees the PAC “Our goal is to support the president’s agenda, support candidates who do the same. That’s the whole purpose of the leadership PAC.”

The first signs of tensions emerged in recent weeks when it was revealed that Pence’s doctor, Jennifer Peña, was among the more than 20 people who spoke with the Senate Veterans Affairs committee about concerns about the conduct of Ronny Jackson, Trump’s White House doctor, who subsequently withdrew him nomination to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs.

But Pence’s team quickly sought to demonstrate fealty to Trump. Peña, they noted, was assigned to him by the White House Medical Unit, and was not a handpicked member of Pence’s staff. Days after Jackson withdrew his nomination, Peña resigned.

Strain, or the illusion of it, between the president and vice president has been a near-permanent feature in Washington, with Barack Obama and Joe Biden’s unusually close relationship being the exception that proved the rule. Vice President Dick Cheney was seen as a hawkish puppeteer in George W. Bush’s White House, and was marginalized as Bush’s presidency wore on. Al Gore famously sought to distance himself from Bill Clinton during the 2000 presidential race in the wake of Clinton’s scandalous involvement with Monica Lewinsky.

Pence toyed with making a 2016 presidential run but announced in May 2015 he’d sit the race out, a month before Trump declared his candidacy. The vice president played a key role in Trump’s failed effort to repeal Obamacare as well as in the successful tax bill push.

He has so far remained clear of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election – and was cast as a victim of former national security adviser Michael Flynn’s lies about contacts with Russians before Flynn’s firing in February 2017.

“Mike Pence, while having a political future, has been 100 percent loyal to Donald Trump, which may or may not present Pence issues down the road,” said Ari Fleischer, former press secretary to Bush. “What Mike Pence wisely recognizes is his wagon is hitched to Donald Trump no matter what.”

With that in mind, he said, it only makes sense for Pence to be as ardent of a supporter of Trump’s agenda as possible. “A successful Trump presidency will put Mike Pence in a relatively strong position,” Fleischer said. “An unsuccessful presidency for Donald Trump will likely doom him.”

But Pence could face a challenge in the near future as Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain, who is battling brain cancer, is expected to request, according to reports, that Pence attend his funeral rather than the president, who insulted McCain’s war record early in his candidacy and more recently has done nothing to disavow comments made by a staffer dismissing McCain as a result of his terminal illness.

Seeing Pence warmly welcomed by someone who snubbed him could trigger Trump’s anger – or, more likely, send him on an unrelated Twitter rant to draw the attention back to himself.

“Knowing the president somewhat, I do not think Trump thinks anyone overshadows him,” Mary Matalin, a former counselor to Vice President Dick Cheney, said in an email to POLITICO. “And he is right about that.”

 

Just confirming what a petty, petty man 45 is.  

 

20 hours ago, AmazonGrace said:

He could be right, a lot more people probably start their day praying now (oh my God what did the President do now?)

Alternate prayer suggestions: let this nightmare called 45 be over soon, let Mueller bring the whole lot of them down, and let there be a big blue wave in November.