To find the truth, follow the money. And to find out who Vice President Mike Pence would like to see remain or join Congress, look at the recipients of his first campaign donations from his political action committee ahead of the 2018 midterm elections.
Many are from the establishment, and others are from insurgent conservative circles, Politico first reported. Notably, what bridges the divide between the often-warring camps inside the Republican conference is a loyalty to the White House.
“The vice president is grateful to those who have gone above and beyond to promote the president’s policies,” explained Alyssa Farah, a Pence spokeswoman. “He will always stand with those who stand with the president’s agenda.”
Establishment Republican stalwarts such as Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming and Sen. David Perdue of Georgia got just as much as conservative fire-breather Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas. Both cashed checks for $5,400, the legal maximum, from Pence. Over in the House, though, the money was earmarked much more heavily for the Freedom Caucus.
Pence spent generously in support of those conservatives who President Trump once blamed by name for sinking Obamacare repeal in the House. Apparently that transgression has been forgotten. Checks for $5,400 were delivered to Republican Reps. Scott DesJarlais of Tennessee, Andy Harris of Maryland, Alex Mooney of West Virginia, and Ron DeSantis of Florida.
Despite being perennial thorns in the side of House leadership (or maybe because of it), current and former Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows of North Carolina and Jim Jordan of Ohio also got checks.
Governors and gubernatorial hopefuls were also not forgotten. Pence donated $1,000 each to five different current governors from Scott Walker of Wisconsin to Rick Scott of Florida. Interestingly, Scott can’t run for re-election, but he may run for the Senate against Democratic incumbent Bill Nelson. Also interestingly, the vice president gave money to Rep. Diane Black, who is running for the Tennessee governor’s mansion. Though subtle, that’s notable: Pence appears to be backing Black in that race against Randy Boyd, who enjoys establishment support from the likes of Jeb Bush.
By all accounts, this generosity will continue. Pence has been chasing and stacking paper since taking office. His leadership PAC raised $1 million in one evening back in July. As the midterms approach, there’s little indication Pence will slow down.
