Pence: ‘Public virtue’ will make America great again

“We will not restore this nation with public policy alone it will require public virtue and that emanates from the traditional institutions of our nation — family and religion,” Pence told attendees at the Values Voters Summit in Washington D.C., Saturday. “At the center of all of our policies will be the notion of the importance, the paramount importance of the family. And also will be at the center of our policies, will be a commitment to ensure the vitality and the freedom of religion of every American of every religious institution in the land.”

The comments addressed a perceived weakness on religious liberty issues that has caused both Trump and Pence to take fire from some the Left and Right. But Pence rallied the crowd by reminding them of the legacy of religious activists who fought to abolish slavery and reiterated Trump’s pledge to expand the rights of churches to engage in political activity without losing their tax-exempt status.

“Anyone with more than a passing knowledge of the founding of this nation knows that the most powerful speeches that thundered about independence in the land thundered from the pulpits of this nation,” Pence said. “We will take the muzzle off people of faith in this nation and let the voice of faith be heard.”

The issue is politically-tricky for Pence, who angered conservatives by revising a state Religious Freedom Restoration Act in order to end a corporate boycott of Indiana that was spurred by gay rights activists claiming that the law would permit discrimination against LGBT people. “I abhor discrimination,” Pence said at the time. “If we have to make adjustments in this law to make it clear that simply that this law was never intended, as some have mischaracterized it, to create the impression that businesses have the right to turn away customers for sexual orientation or any other reason — we’re going to fix that.”