Former Vice President Mike Pence stoked anticipation of a 2024 White House campaign by announcing his agenda in Washington, D.C., hours before former President Donald Trump took the stage a couple of blocks away.
Pence defended the Trump administration’s record while imploring Young America’s Foundation’s annual conference attendees to look to the future rather than the past.
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“I don’t know that the president and I differ on issues, but we may differ on focus,” he said Tuesday of Trump. “I believe elections are about the future.”
“American freedom is under attack” because of “a pernicious woke agenda” driven by “Big Tech, big media, big government” designed “to control the American people,” according to Pence.
“Conservatism is bigger than any one moment, any one election, or any one person,” Pence said. “To win, conservatives need to do more than criticize and complain. We must unite our movement behind a bold, optimistic agenda that offers a clear and compelling choice to the American people.”
He added his agenda, meant to be unveiled at the Heritage Foundation but delayed because of inclement weather, is underpinned by cultural concerns, including protecting “the sanctity of life,” religious liberty, and freedom of speech, in addition to the southern border, law enforcement, and the Second Amendment.
“We saved the babies. We’ll save America,” he said.
Economic opportunity is his agenda’s second priority, Pence said. Earlier, he reflected on life after leaving office, saying the best development was being able to drive his car again — the downside being he now had to pay for his own gas.
For Pence, his last plank was “American leadership,” ripping President Joe Biden’s deadly withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan.
Pence was warmly welcomed by 400-odd young conservatives at the J.W. Marriott close to the White House. They cheered when he was mentioned during introductory remarks, as well as greeting him with a standing ovation and chants of “U-S-A!” His only reference to Jan. 6 was as that “tragic day in our nation’s capital.”
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Pence’s appearance underscored the similarities and differences between him and Trump, the latter who is scheduled to speak at his first D.C. event since the end of his term. His address will be delivered at the America First Agenda Summit, organized by the research institute staffed by many of his ex-aides.
