Pence says he's not endorsing Trump in 2024



Former Vice President Mike Pence, who served alongside then-President Donald Trump from early 2017 through early 2021, has said that he will not endorse Trump during the 2024 presidential contest.

Pence told Fox News Channel's Martha MacCallum, "It should come as no surprise that I will not be endorsing Donald Trump this year."

Pence, who launched a GOP presidential primary bid in 2023 but then dropped out later that same year, said that he had been clear during his campaign that "profound differences" separated him from Trump "on a range of issues."

When MacCallum pressed Pence about who he plans to vote for this year, the former vice president said that he will keep his vote to himself. But when she asked Pence if he will vote for Biden, Pence decisively rejected that idea: "I would never vote for Joe Biden," he said. And when McCallum asked whether Pence plans to run third-party, the former vice president responded, "I'm a Republican, Martha."

Trump is the presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee while Biden is the presumptive 2024 Democratic presidential nominee.


Pence and Trump had a falling out at the tail end of their time in office

"The Vice President has the power to reject fraudulently chosen electors," Trump tweeted in January 2021. "If Vice President @Mike_Pence comes through for us, we will win the Presidency. Many States want to decertify the mistake they made in certifying incorrect & even fraudulent numbers in a process NOT approved by their State Legislatures (which it must be). Mike can send it back!" he wrote in another tweet.

But Pence noted, "It is my considered judgment that my oath to support and defend the Constitution constrains me from claiming unilateral authority to determine which electoral votes should be counted and which should not."

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

LIVE: Blaze Media Reacts to 2024 Republican Presidential Debate, Moderated by Megyn Kelly

LIVE: Blaze Media Reacts to 2024 Republican Presidential Debate, Moderated by Megyn Kelly

'Donald Duck': Trump, who skipped 2nd GOP presidential primary debate, targeted by competitors



Seven Republican presidential hopefuls gathered at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California on Wednesday night to participate in the second GOP presidential primary debate of the 2024 election cycle.

Debate participants included Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence, author and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, and U.S. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina. Candidates were required to meet polling and fundraising thresholds in order to be eligible to participate in the debate.

Former President Donald Trump, who remains the clear primary frontrunner, skipped the event on Wednesday night after previously skipping the first GOP presidential primary debate last month. Trump delivered a speech in Michigan on Wednesday night.

During the debate, DeSantis and Christie called out Trump for skipping the event and for the trillions of dollars of debt the U.S. piled on during his White House tenure.

"Donald Trump is missing in action. He should be on this stage tonight," DeSantis declared. "He owes it to you to defend his record where they added $7.8 trillion to the debt. That set the stage for the inflation that we have."

Later during the event, Christie looked directly into a camera and addressed Trump, claiming that the former president skipped the debate because he is "afraid" of appearing at the event and defending his record. "You're ducking these things," he said, adding that if Trump continues to do so, people will call him "Donald Duck."

— (@)

Pence said that as president he would approach Congress about passing "a federal expedited death penalty for anyone involved in a mass shooting" so perpetrators "meet their fate in months, not years."

Haley blasted Ramaswamy, telling him, "every time I hear you, I feel a little bit dumber for what you say."

— (@)

Later during the debate Ramaswamy advocated for reducing "the federal employee headcount by 75%."

DeSantis said that he rejects the notion "that pro-lifers are to blame for midterm defeats."

At the end of the debate, Dana Perino, who was one of the debate moderators, said that if all the candidates on the stage remain in the race, Trump will clinch the GOP presidential nomination. She instructed the candidates to write down which of their competitors on the stage "should be voted off the island." The candidates declined to do so.

The next GOP presidential primary debate is slated to take place in Miami, Florida in November.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Trump was 'the elephant not in the room' at the first Republican presidential primary debate of the 2024 cycle



Eight Republican presidential hopefuls gathered Wednesday in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, for the first GOP primary debate of the 2024 presidential election cycle, but former President Donald Trump, the clear frontrunner who has been trouncing the rest of the field according to polling, was conspicuously absent because he opted to skip the event.

Tucker Carlson released an interview with Trump on Wednesday night just before the start of the debate, though reports indicate the interview had been previously recorded.

The candidates who participated in the debate were Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, former Vice President Mike Pence, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum.

Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum of the Fox News Channel moderated the debate. About halfway through the event, Baier raised the topic of "the elephant not in the room" in reference to Trump.

When Baier asked whether the candidates would support Trump if he is convicted in court but is the GOP presidential nominee, six of the candidates appeared to raise their hands to indicate that they would still support Trump, while Hutchinson did not raise his hand. Christie, who has been an outspoken Trump opponent, made motions with his hand, but then indicated that he was not raising his hand.

When Baier asked whether any of the candidates would not support additional funding for Ukraine, Ramaswamy raised his hand. DeSantis said that U.S. support should be contingent on Europe doing its part.

Haley said that climate change is "real," suggesting that pressure should be placed on China and India to decrease their emissions.

Burgum claimed that there should not be a federal abortion ban in the U.S. because such a ban would be precluded by the 10th Amendment of the Constitution.

When MacCallum asked DeSantis whether he would support dispatching U.S. special forces into Mexico to target fentanyl labs and drug cartel operations, DeSantis answered, "Yes, and I will do it on day one."

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Who Won the First GOP Presidential Debate? Blaze Media REACTS

Who Won the First GOP Presidential Debate? Blaze Media REACTS

Struggling Republican candidate Mike Pence likely to be a star witness in Trump's Jan. 6 trial



Trailing former President Donald Trump in the polls by nearly 50 points, Mike Pence stands little chance of politically taking down his former running mate. However, he may yet pose Trump some trouble, as he is likely to take the stand as a star witness in Trump's Jan. 6 trial.

The indictment features Pence prominently and makes mention of the secret notes he took in real time concerning private conversations he had with Trump ahead of the Jan. 6 protests.

What's the background?

Trump was indicted earlier this week on four criminal charges related to his alleged attempt to undo the 2020 election.

The charges are as follows: conspiracy to defraud the U.S.; conspiracy to impede an official proceeding (i.e., the Jan. 6, 2021, certification of the electoral vote); obstructing and impeding the certification of the electoral vote; and conspiracy "to injure, oppress, threaten, and intimidate one or more persons in the free exercise and enjoyment of" the right to vote and have one's vote counted.

Trump, the Republican front-runner going into the 2024 election, pleaded not guilty to all charges.

His trial will be overseen by U.S. District Judge Tanya S. Chutkan, an Obama-appointed judge who used to be a partner at Hunter Biden's former law firm.

In the 45-page indictment penned by the Biden DOJ's special counsel Jack Smith, Pence is prominently cast as the protagonist who rejected Trump's "knowingly false claims" of election fraud and thwarted the will of those who allegedly sought to overturn the election result.

Despite allegedly rejecting Trump's concerns about election fraud, Pence has repeatedly raised doubts about the integrity of the 2020 election, including in a March 3, 2021, op-ed in the Daily Signal, in which he said the election was "marked by significant voting irregularities and numerous instances of officials setting aside state election law."

Nevertheless, he may end up being the Biden Department of Justice's star witness in Trump's Jan. 6 trial.

The Biden DOJ's star witness

The indictment references Pence's "contemporaneous notes" and provides detailed accounts of private conversations, including:

  • a phone call with Trump on Christmas Day 2020, when "the defendant quickly turned the conversations to Jan. 6 and his request that the Vice President reject electoral votes that day";
  • a Dec. 29, 2020, conversation in which Trump allegedly told Pence that the "Justice Dept was finding major infractions"; and
  • a Jan. 1, 2021, conversation in which Trump allegedly berated Pence over his refusal to return votes to the states at the Jan. 6 certification.

It's unclear how many private conversations Pence surreptitiously recorded, though the New York Times reported that the transcript of his testimony to a Washington grand jury released last month featured 18 consecutive pages that were blacked out.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) claimed Thursday that the Jan. 6 committee was not previously aware that Pence took these notes in real time, adding, "That he did that is going to be very important in terms of his testimony."

The Telegraph noted that Pence's secret notes will likely prove helpful to prosecutors in establishing Trump's state of mind at the time — critical since they will have to demonstrate criminal intent, "specifically, that he knew the claims he was spreading about the election being fraudulent were false."

John Lauro, a lawyer for Trump, said, "We expect that he [Mr. Pence] will be a witness."

Lauro added, "Mr. Pence is a lawyer. Not once did he say 'Mr. Trump, what you're asking me is criminal, don't do that.'"

Former Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz told the Washington Times that the value of Pence's testimony for the prosecution depends on whether he can show Trump believed Biden had actually won the election.

"If he swears that Trump admitted that he lost fair and square, that would be compelling," said Dershowitz. "I doubt that's true."

Political advantage and backlash

Pence seized upon Trump's indictment this week, suggesting that it is disqualifying for his top Republican rival.

The struggling candidate said in a Tuesday statement, "Today's indictment serves as an important reminder: anyone who puts himself over the Constitution should never be President of the United States. ... The former president is entitled to the presumption of innocence but with this indictment, his candidacy means more talk about January 6th and more distractions."

— (@)

Pence attempted to distinguish himself from his rival on the basis of the allegations in the indictment, writing, "Our country is more important than one man. Our constitution is more important than any one man’s career. On January 6th, Former President Trump demanded that I choose between him and the Constitution. I chose the Constitution and I always will."

He then indicated what he might do if he ever managed to escape fourth place in the Republican running and defeat President Joe Biden in the general election

While Pence's remarks have attracted a great deal of ridicule online, Trump responded on Truth Social with pity, writing, "I feel badly for Mike Pence, who is attracting no crowds, enthusiasm, or loyalty from people who, as a member of the Trump Administration, should be loving him."

Trump added, "He didn’t fight against Election Fraud, which we will now be easily able to prove based on the most recent Fake Indictment & information which will have to be made available to us, finally ― a really BIG deal. The V.P. had power that Mike didn’t understand, but after the Election, the RINOS & Dems changed the law, taking that power away!"

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

'I commit to pardoning Trump for this indictment,' Vivek Ramaswamy declares while also promising FOIA request



As Republican presidential hopefuls reacted on Tuesday to the news of a four-count indictment against former President Donald Trump, author and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy pledged that as president, he would pardon Trump.

"The corrupt federal police just won’t stop until they’ve achieved their mission: eliminate Trump. This is un-American & I commit to pardoning Trump for this indictment," Ramaswamy tweeted.

He also said he is filing an FOIA request related to the indictment. Earlier this year, he had previously filed an FOIA request pertaining to another indictment against Trump and pledged to pardon Trump in that case.

"I just filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Justice following its failure to substantively respond to my Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to uncover what White House officials including President Joe Biden communicated to Merrick Garland & Jack Smith about the unprecedented indictment in the classified documents case of a former U.S. President and one of Biden's political opponents in the 2024 Presidential election," Ramaswamy tweeted on Tuesday. "I'm also filing a separate FOIA request with the DOJ to uncover any similar communications relating to the just-issued Jan 6 Trump indictment."

— (@)

Former Vice President Mike Pence, who served alongside of Trump, tweeted Tuesday that, "Today's indictment serves as an important reminder: anyone who puts himself over the Constitution should never be President of the United States."

"I will have more to say about the government’s case after reviewing the indictment. The former president is entitled to the presumption of innocence but with this indictment, his candidacy means more talk about January 6th and more distractions," Pence tweeted. "On January 6th, Former President Trump demanded that I choose between him and the Constitution. I chose the Constitution and I always will," Pence wrote.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has consistently polled in a distant second place behind Trump but far ahead of the rest of the GOP pack in the GOP presidential nomination contest, tweeted, "As President, I will end the weaponization of government, replace the FBI Director, and ensure a single standard of justice for all Americans. While I've seen reports, I have not read the indictment. I do, though, believe we need to enact reforms so that Americans have the right to remove cases from Washington, DC to their home districts. Washington, DC is a 'swamp' and it is unfair to have to stand trial before a jury that is reflective of the swamp mentality. One of the reasons our country is in decline is the politicization of the rule of law. No more excuses—I will end the weaponization of the federal government."

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

ENOUGH: Which GOP Candidates Will Lead Us to War with Russia? | Ep 289

ENOUGH: Which GOP Candidates Will Lead Us to War with Russia? | Ep 289

Glenn REACTS to Mike Pence, Asa Hutchinson TORCHING their 2024 campaigns in Tucker Carlson interviews



Two presidential campaigns went down in flames at the 2023 FAMiLY Leadership Summit broadcasted by Blaze Media while others seemed to take off.

Former governor of Arkansas, Asa Hutchinson, was one of them.

In an interview on stage with Tucker Carlson, Hutchinson appeared to suggest that protecting children from trans medical “treatments” is not a big issue.

“Is it treatment to prevent him from going through the natural process of adolescence? How is that treatment? It seems not like treatment, it seems like something else,” Carlson was recorded asking Hutchinson regarding children who want to transition.

“Tucker, I hope that we’ll be able to talk about some issues —” Hutchinson said in response, before Carlson cut him off.

“This is one of the biggest issues in the country and I think every person in this room would agree that it is a central issue because these are children who are being altered permanently, and you can defend that alteration, that change if you like, but there’s really no debate about whether or not it’s permanent,” Carlson quipped back.

Mike Pence was another candidate who seemed to have torpedoed his campaign.

Carlson asked Pence why he is more concerned about providing tanks and funding to Ukraine than he is a degrading economy and sky rocketing suicide and crime rates in the United States.

“Well, it’s not my concern,” Pence responded, adding that “anybody that says we can’t be the leader of the Free World and solve our problems at home has a pretty small view of the greatest nation on Earth. We can do both.”

After that, Stu Burguiere, Pat Gray, and Glenn Beck don’t see much hope for Pence or Hutchinson’s campaigns.

“It was a really bad political soundbite,” Stu says of Pence.

“He also was booed,” Glenn adds.

However, there were standing ovations for Ron DeSantis and Vivek Ramaswamy.

Glenn believes Ramaswamy is “surprising everyone who watches him.”

“I love him,” Gray adds, “I haven’t heard a single viewpoint of his that I disagree with yet.”


Want more from Glenn Beck?

To enjoy more of Glenn’s masterful storytelling, thought-provoking analysis, and uncanny ability to make sense of the chaos, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

Pence says Trump and DeSantis 'don't understand Americans' national interest in supporting the Ukrainian military'



Former Vice President Mike Pence said that he does not think former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis grasp the United States' national interest in aiding Ukraine's effort to oppose Russia's invasion of the country, according to the Associated Press

"With all due respect, I think the former president and the governor of Florida just don't understand Americans' national interest in supporting the Ukrainian military in repelling the Russian military in Ukraine," Pence said, according to the AP. "Make no mistake, China is watching."

Trump currently holds a wide lead over the pack of Republican presidential primary candidates while DeSantis is trailing in a distant second place.

Pence, who served as vice president during Trump's White House tenure, announced a presidential bid last month.

The U.S. has approved billions worth of aid to assist the embattled nation of Ukraine, but many Americans oppose lavishing aid on the foreign nation.

"I think we need to stand firm, stand strong," Pence opined, according to the AP. "I'm going to do that, while others may be giving way to a more populist sentiment."

The former vice president, who recently traveled to Ukraine, said that "if we don't give the Ukrainian military what they need to defeat and repel the Russian invasion, I'm convinced that the second half of the 21st century will look a great deal more like the first half of the 20th century."

Pence has said it would not be in America's interests to dispatch U.S. forces to Ukraine and that he would "never support" such a move. But he thinks that if Russian President Vladimir Putin conquers Ukraine, he will eventually send troops to breach the border of another nation, triggering a NATO issue that would require the U.S. to send troops.

— (@)

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!