Pence talks about his relationship with Trump, ‘common ground’ at Mackinac Policy Conference

MACKINAC ISLAND – While Michigan’s business and political elite continue to hold court on Mackinac Island this week, they heard from a man largely exiled from his own party about finding common political ground.

Former Vice President Mike Pence was one of the featured keynote speakers at this year’s Mackinac Policy Conference. His address Wednesday aimed to give insights into what it might take to bridge America’s growing divide. Pence also offered a glimpse into his relationship with President Donald Trump following their falling out over the 2020 election.

Pence’s inclusion on the roster was notable. The conference this year has a theme of seeking common ground in the age divided government and a deeply divided populace. Although some attendees have told Michigan Advance this week that they are skeptical about whether that type of common ground still exists, Pence was hailed at the conference as one its old guard champions.

At Mackinac conference, calls for common ground meet political reality

That may be a difficult pill to swallow for those who believe Pence was integral in normalizing Trump and ushering him into power. 

Pence, in his session moderated by Roop Raj of FOX-2 Detroit, continued to praise the president in surprising ways, especially considering the way their relationship ended. When he looks back on Trump’s legacy, Pence called the president’s elections in 2016 and 2024 reflective of how people viewed Washington and whether it was listening to their most basic problems.

“For generations, the American people in the heartland and across the country were just tired of being told the future is not going to be as good as the past. They were tired of being told that our values are no longer acceptable,” Pence said. “I’m tired of being told, as Ronald Reagan said, that a little intellectual elite in a far distant capital can plan our lives better for us than we can plan them ourselves. And so I think our election in 2016 and I think the president’s return into the White House in 2024 was emblematic of the desire of the American people to regain the helm of the national government and steer it toward all of those principles that have always made the country strong and prosperous and free.” 

On whether American politics was too far gone to be saved in another era of Trump, the notably white-haired Pence said he agreed that the nation’s politics was more divided and in more profound ways at any time “since he had dark hair.” Still, he said the American people were “the most resilient,” and could find ways out of their current political quarrels.

“We just need government as good as our people again,” Pence said. “ I believe we’ll have it and we’ll have it soon.”

As Trump was barreling his way toward his first election in 2016, Pence’s inclusion on the ticket had solidified the right’s support of Trump if they weren’t already in his camp. Much of that had to do with Pence’s firm stance against the LGBTQ+ community and his championing of the anti-abortion movement, which his supporters hoped would become a part of Trump’s agenda.

In that way, Pence was very much part of the Republican Party’s effort to legitimize Trump when he was still a newcomer to national politics.

The former vice president will go down in history, however, as the man who likely prevented a constitutional crisis on Jan. 6, 2021, when he refused to halt the U.S. Senate’s certification of Electoral College votes for former President Joe Biden. Pence acknowledged his role in counting the votes was a ceremonial one and he did not have the legal authority to stop the procedure.

Trump, however, amassed an army of supporters in the nation’s capitol that day, many of whom then proceeded to storm the Capitol building in an attempt to stop the count. The resulting violence saw more than 170 law enforcement officers assaulted and caused more than $2.5 million in damages. 

Pence’s perceived heroism came as those rioters even built a homemade gallows to hang the vice president if they could find him. With the GOP largely focused on fealty to Trump, Pence is now a pariah in the Republican Party. 

While some Democrats have thanked Pence for refusing to illegally halt the transfer of power in 2021, their support stops there.

Given the way that they had fallen out, Raj asked whether Pence has spoken to Trump since, or if he has the kind of relationship with the president that would allow him to just pick up the phone and call him.

“It’s been a while,” Pence said to laughs from the audience before noting that he did congratulate him on his 2024 win. “We had a warm exchange. We don’t talk as often as we used to, which was every day, almost all day long, and early.”

Pence doubled down that he and the president had a great working relationship when it was good. He also noted that he had to do the right thing when the rubber hit the road to protect American democracy.

“It didn’t end that way, but I’ll always believe, by God’s grace, I did my duty to support and defend the Constitution of the United States,” Pence said. “I’ll always be proud of that record.”