Pence will never get any of the MAGA voters. He would have a better shot if he stopped calling Trump's actions on Jan. 6 "reckless" and started using terms like "criminal" and "treasonous". It would show he actually has a backbone, and then he might get some of the anti-Trump vote.
IMO, Pence was a has been in 2015 and surprised he was picked as the Veep. Yes, he did the right thing on January 6th but that was his job, for Gods sake. For him to need to seek out advice from Quayle? Ridiculous. It was his job, if he needed to seek advice to make sure he was doing the right thing, is there an out??? What the heck. He is utterly spineless in anything else. You want to run for president and can’t say that Trump is a criminal, he initiated an insurrection? You have no business running for president. He will never get the MAGA vote, so that’s a lost cause. Grow a spine, come out swinging and perhaps you will get some notice. Not to say he has it in him to garner the nomination, but he may make some noise. Right now, he’s DOA.
What Pence did on Jan 6 was not just him doing his job. It is what he had to do to avoid criminal charges. Having the courage to not commit a crime is a pretty low bar for conduct and gets no praise from me.
A third question I suppose would be, “What conceivable reason is there for his candidacy?” He can always endorse DeSantis when he bows out. Combined with the Jeb! nod that should really put the wind in Ron’s sails.
I did like seeing the number that 22% would never vote for Trump.
Before I even read the end of your column, I said that "He'll endorse Tim Scott".
Another commenter had a great--and appropriate--question about that, though: Would Scott want that endorsement? He might be better off if Pence just stayed silent.
Spot-on analysis as usual, Mr CC. My side comment, though: surely the fair thing for the RNC would be to open the first debate to EVERYONE without preconditions? So what if there are more than 10 candidates on stage? Plenty of time after that for fancy rules about donors and polls…
Mannequin Mike is such sycophantic and morally dubious loser, he will give a big wet kiss to the obese hinder of the Secessionist-in-Chief, who spured the call for his hanging.
'Cuz that's the kind of pathetic, spineless worm Pence is.
Given what we’ve seen and heard from Pence and his obvious lack of any kind of self-respect, would it really shock anyone if he endorsed Trump? That sounds so ridiculous, but I could also see it happening.
Spinelessness is not an attractive quality in a candidate. As for the debate, Trump will not be there so no one will watch it. I will , but that is just to see Cristie take shots at the absent Trump. I hope they set out an empty chair (or maybe a recliner) for Trump on the debate stage. :-) All these Trump challengers are just hoping Trump dies or makes a plea deal to exit politics to avoid charges. Trump will not do that as he follows Rodger Stones mantra of never admitting when you are wrong.
Pence will never get any of the MAGA voters. He would have a better shot if he stopped calling Trump's actions on Jan. 6 "reckless" and started using terms like "criminal" and "treasonous". It would show he actually has a backbone, and then he might get some of the anti-Trump vote.
That interview with Dana Bash on CNN yesterday was peak cringe.
Having a backbone was never a Pence attribute.
IMO, Pence was a has been in 2015 and surprised he was picked as the Veep. Yes, he did the right thing on January 6th but that was his job, for Gods sake. For him to need to seek out advice from Quayle? Ridiculous. It was his job, if he needed to seek advice to make sure he was doing the right thing, is there an out??? What the heck. He is utterly spineless in anything else. You want to run for president and can’t say that Trump is a criminal, he initiated an insurrection? You have no business running for president. He will never get the MAGA vote, so that’s a lost cause. Grow a spine, come out swinging and perhaps you will get some notice. Not to say he has it in him to garner the nomination, but he may make some noise. Right now, he’s DOA.
What Pence did on Jan 6 was not just him doing his job. It is what he had to do to avoid criminal charges. Having the courage to not commit a crime is a pretty low bar for conduct and gets no praise from me.
Here's one for you:
Would Tim Scott even want Pence's endorsement given how radioactive he is to the Trump base?
A third question I suppose would be, “What conceivable reason is there for his candidacy?” He can always endorse DeSantis when he bows out. Combined with the Jeb! nod that should really put the wind in Ron’s sails.
I did like seeing the number that 22% would never vote for Trump.
Before I even read the end of your column, I said that "He'll endorse Tim Scott".
Another commenter had a great--and appropriate--question about that, though: Would Scott want that endorsement? He might be better off if Pence just stayed silent.
Spot-on analysis as usual, Mr CC. My side comment, though: surely the fair thing for the RNC would be to open the first debate to EVERYONE without preconditions? So what if there are more than 10 candidates on stage? Plenty of time after that for fancy rules about donors and polls…
Re: Who will Pence support?
Mannequin Mike is such sycophantic and morally dubious loser, he will give a big wet kiss to the obese hinder of the Secessionist-in-Chief, who spured the call for his hanging.
'Cuz that's the kind of pathetic, spineless worm Pence is.
Given what we’ve seen and heard from Pence and his obvious lack of any kind of self-respect, would it really shock anyone if he endorsed Trump? That sounds so ridiculous, but I could also see it happening.
You break these things down like no one else
Spinelessness is not an attractive quality in a candidate. As for the debate, Trump will not be there so no one will watch it. I will , but that is just to see Cristie take shots at the absent Trump. I hope they set out an empty chair (or maybe a recliner) for Trump on the debate stage. :-) All these Trump challengers are just hoping Trump dies or makes a plea deal to exit politics to avoid charges. Trump will not do that as he follows Rodger Stones mantra of never admitting when you are wrong.
He is so treading water so as not to upset trump. The man is a piss ant.
I can’t imagine there is a politician with lower approval ratings than Pence ... virtually no one in his corner