He Was Once a Favorite of the Right. Now, Mike Pence Can’t Get a Crowd of 15 to a Pizza Ranch.
Highlights: To watch Pence on the trail these days is to see a man navigating the awkward, abrupt transition from being next in the line of presidential succession just four years ago to backbencher status among the Republican field. You can see him grapple with his own political mortality, working it out in public.
Since disclosing that he has just $1.2 million cash left, alongside more than $620,000 in debt, Pence’s presidential campaign has not said whether he has qualified for the third debate in Miami next month; he’s reached the polling minimum but not the donor threshold.
Nearly six months into his presidential campaign, and fewer than 90 days until the Iowa caucuses, Pence is not seeing massive crowds like his former running mate Donald Trump, or his fellow Midwesterner Vivek Ramaswamy, or Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, or even his longtime frenemy, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. Thirty folks at Penn Drug store in Sidney on a recent Friday morning; another 30 at the Olive Branch Restaurant in Greenfield that afternoon; 60 at a senior center in Glenwood the next day. Nor is he seeing anything but single-digit backing in polls. In Iowa, he’s currently averaging just 2.6 percent among Republican voters.
It’s difficult to find a political prognosticator who is not on his payroll who gives Pence any plausible shot at winning the nomination, a reality he acknowledged on the trail earlier this month. “The media has already decided how all this is going to end,” he told just 13 people at a Pizza Ranch in Red Oak.
I think Pence would actually do better if he went full Chris Christie and attacked Trump. Pence stopped a coup attempt by certifying the vote. If the guy would stand up, denounce Trump, and paint himself a hero then he's probably doing a lot better than he is currently. Instead he's sitting on the fence like a massive turd.
He could pull numbers just by hammering the facts: Trump tried to have him killed. It's a fact, a well known one, and Pence would maintain the moral upper hand as such. But Republicans are all weak greaseballs who can't be creative unless it's to take advantage of someone financially.
Yeah, it's truly disappointing. By the numbers Pence should be an excellent candidate for the right, he's been married (first marriage) to the same person since 1985, he's so religious he has documented life events that he's made decisions based on faith, he's a seasoned politician (Congressman, Governor, and Vice President), and while his politics are terrible I don't think he himself is a bad person.
For that last part, it's a pretty low bar. It's the sort of thought, "If he had the opportunity to kill someone without being caught, and it made him money, I don't think he'd do it." This is the same idea for many of our past presidents and candidates. If my (fictional) teenage daughter passed out for some reason and I had to run to get help, I wouldn't have any concerns leaving Mike Pence (Obama, Biden, George Bush, or Romney) with her for a while so I could get help. Guy might cheat on his taxes or tell a white lie or justified lie, but he seems like a passably nice guy (in the I'll cancel your right to an abortion, but if I get you pregnant I'll own up and take responsibility for you and the child kind of way).
I might be reading more into his character than I should, but add that to mine and your past statement and I totally agree he would be a more popular candidate.
I’m much more pessimistic than you all that that would have any sway. Why would that work when republicans actively like Trump so much?
Right, if only his campaign was as successful as checks notes Chris Christie's?????
It's not about the "success" of Christie's campaign. It's about committing to a position. As it stands, Pence looks like a fence sitter. He prevented a coup but still can't call it like it is.
You've had Elf on the Shelf, get ready for Pence on the Fence!
Historically Pence hitched himself to whatever the popular wagon was. Indiana was business Republican and in his governorship over it he tried going Fox News Republican with the aim of the White House, and everyone hated him for it.
It comes as no surprise that he tried to get on Team Trump just as it comes as no surprise that since he isn't Don hes an afterthought. His usefulness is up and his political career is done. Maybe he can get a job at Fox or a conservative thinktank where he can parrot more talking points.
I'm not saying he'd be beating Trump, but I think he wouldn't have doubts about qualifying for the primary debates.