{"id":2089001,"date":"2023-11-03T12:42:01","date_gmt":"2023-11-03T16:42:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/understanding-mike-pences-failed-presidential-campaign\/"},"modified":"2023-11-03T12:46:29","modified_gmt":"2023-11-03T16:46:29","slug":"understanding-mike-pences-failed-presidential-campaign","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/understanding-mike-pences-failed-presidential-campaign\/","title":{"rendered":"Mike Pence&#8217;s unsuccessful bid for presidency explained."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">14<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Funderstanding-mike-pences-failed-presidential-campaign%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2089001&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><blockquote>\n<h2>News Analysis<\/h2>\n<p class=\"p1\">When former Vice President Mike Pence announced his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination, his \u2063pitch \u200dwas\u2064 crystal\u2063 clear. He positioned himself \u200das the anti-Trump candidate, hoping voters \u2064would reward him for rejecting the former president\u2019s demands to challenge the certification of the bitterly disputed\u2063 2020 presidential election results.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cI believe that anyone who puts themselves over \u2062the Constitution should never be\u200b president of the United\u2063 States,\u201d he said of his former boss.\u200b \u201cAnd anyone who asks someone else to put them over \u200cthe \u2063Constitution \u2064should never be\u2063 president \u2063of\u200c the United States again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Just four months on, Mr. Pence \u200bhas thrown in the proverbial towel on \u200dhis presidential ambitions. Announcing the suspension of his \u2063campaign last \u200cweekend, the former vice president insisted he had \u201cno regrets\u201d about his decision to run in the first place.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">According to CNN, Mr. Pence made the decision amid fears he may not even qualify for the third\u200b Republican debate\u2063 later this month due to a \u200black of donors and single-digit polling figures.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">After his campaign ended, one \u2062might be forgiven for asking: What \u200dwas Mr. Pence trying to achieve?<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Running for the presidency primarily \u200dserves to enhance one&#8217;s national visibility or \u200cposition oneself as a potential candidate for \u200ca cabinet\u2064 position. Yet given Mr. Pence&#8217;s\u200b recognition from his time in the White\u200c House, this was hardly necessary.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The other explanation is that he genuinely\u2063 believed he could win both the nomination and the presidency, even though it was clear from the\u200c outset that his chances of success were slim. His overall RealClearPolitics polling average had him at 3.4 percent, below the \u2063likes of former South Carolina Governor Nikki \u200cHaley and the businessman\u2064 Vivek \u200dRamaswamy.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cMike Pence\u2019s campaign always resembled Dan Quayle, the last Republican \u2063one-term former\u200d vice president who tried running,\u201d Dennis\u200b Lennox, a \u2062Michigan-based \u200dRepublican consultant \u200bwho \u2064has\u200b worked on various presidential campaigns, told The Epoch Times. \u2063\u201cI\u2019m not convinced that\u2064 even in an alternative pre-2016 reality former Vice President Mike Pence \u2062would have cleared the field or been the frontrunner.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cThere\u2063 were also always questions about whether he even had \u2063a real campaign,\u201d he continued. \u201cFrom \u2064the beginning, he struggled with fundraising, and I\u2019m not sure he even \u2064filed for any ballots. The reality is \u2062we\u2064 are now at the stage of the \u2064campaign \u2063where filing deadlines for \u200dall 56 state and\u2064 territory primaries\u2063 and caucuses are coming and going.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Others \u200cbelieve that his campaign was merely\u200d about satisfying his \u200bego, even if that \u200bmeant damaging his credibility \u2063among Republican voters.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cMike Pence has long positioned himself as\u2063 a sort of \u2018principled\u2019\u200c martyr for conservatism. A close look at his record indicates that \u200dis far from \u2064the case,\u201d\u200d said Newsweek senior editor and \u200cconservative\u2062 podcast host\u2063 Josh Hammer.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cThose with a reasonably good memory will recall\u200d how, in \u20642015, then-Indiana \u200cGovernor Pence,\u2062 who long campaigned as a staunch social \u2064conservative, folded like a cheap suit when the\u200c business\u200c lobby objected \u2064to Indiana\u2019s \u2063Religious\u2063 Freedom Restoration Act. His quixotic 2024 presidential\u2063 bid was similarly less about \u2018principle\u2019 than it was about\u200c satisfying his own \u2062outsize ego.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Some conservatives take a more sympathetic view. For example, Gregg Keller, founder\u2064 of Atlas Strategy \u200bGroup,\u2063 told \u200dThe Epoch Times \u200bthat Mr. Pence \u200csaw\u2064 his campaign as an opportunity to highlight socially conservative issues such as abortion and the \u200dnuclear family.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cVP Pence is animated by the cultural and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gop-leaders-to-meet-with-trump-on-agenda\/\" title=\"GOP Leaders to Meet With Trump on Agenda\">social conservative issues<\/a>\u2063 which defined his career,\u201d Mr. Keller explained. \u201cAnd, however imperfectly, I believe he saw his\u200c campaign as a vehicle to keep those \u200d<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/understanding-mike-pences-failed-presidential-campaign\/\" title=\"Mike Pence's unsuccessful bid for presidency explained.\">culturally conservative issues\u2014pro-life<\/a>, our\u2064 coarsening \u200cculture, the\u2064 centrality of the family, etc.\u2014top-of-mind for Republican voters,\u201d he continued. \u201cHe\u2019ll always be a voice of those issues our voters \u200crespect and consult.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Michael Johns, a former White House presidential speechwriter and Heritage Foundation \u200cpolicy analyst, argued that Mr. Pence&#8217;s campaign was likely \u2062born out of a\u200d lifelong desire \u200dto reach \u2063the Oval\u2063 Office.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">&#8220;It is quite likely that Pence&#8217;s presidential aspirations date back to the beginning of this century when he was \u2064in\u2064 Congress. If not then,\u200c they certainly emerged when he\u200c was governor of \u2064Indiana. Now it is 2023, and \u200dhis national recognition\u2064 is arguably at its height, he \u200dlikely concluded that it was worth\u200d the \u200dattempt.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">&#8220;Did he ever feel with certainty he could secure the nomination or presidency? Almost certainly \u2064not, but it\u200d is also true that many times \u200bpresidents begin a campaign without that level of confidence.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>However, Mr. Johns concurs \u2064with a prevailing\u200b view among\u200d the Republican grassroots \u200dthat\u200b Mr. Pence&#8217;s refusal \u2063to challenge the certification of the 2020 election amounted \u2064to a\u2064 betrayal. This issue\u200b was repeatedly referenced \u200don the\u200c campaign trail, with hecklers calling him a &#8220;traitor&#8221; for his \u2064failure to act.<\/p>\n<div class=\"shortcode\">\n<div class=\"border-comp-divider mb-4 mr-4 w-full max-w-[500px] border px-5 py-4 text-[16px] leading-[20px] text-[#262626] md:float-left\" id=\"in_article_related_stories\">\n<h2 class=\"mb-3 font-sans text-[16px] font-semibold uppercase leading-[19px] text-[#2F2F2F]\">Related Stories<\/h2>\n<div class=\"mb-4 flex gap-2\">\n<div class=\"grow\">\n<div class=\"mb-1 line-clamp-4 sm:line-clamp-3\">\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/us\/mike-pence-suspends-presidential-bid-this-is-not-my-time-5518770?ea_src=author_manual&#038;ea_med=related_stories\"><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"text-sm sm:text-base\">Mike Pence Suspends Presidential Bid: &#8216;This Is \u2063Not \u200cMy Time&#8217;<\/h3>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"text-comp-caption text-[14px] leading-[18px]\">10\/28\/2023<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"shrink-0 basis-[70px] sm:basis-[120px]\">\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/us\/mike-pence-suspends-presidential-bid-this-is-not-my-time-5518770?ea_src=author_manual&#038;ea_med=related_stories\">\n<picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" https:><\/source><source type=\"image\/jpeg\" https:><\/source>\n<\/picture>\n<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"mb-4 flex gap-2\">\n<div class=\"grow\">\n<div class=\"mb-1 line-clamp-4 sm:line-clamp-3\">\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/us\/mike-pences-2024-campaign-is-six-figures-in-debt-5510969?ea_src=author_manual&#038;ea_med=related_stories\"><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"text-sm sm:text-base\">Mike Pence&#8217;s \u20642024 Campaign\u200b Is \u2064Six Figures in Debt<\/h3>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"text-comp-caption text-[14px] leading-[18px]\">10\/16\/2023<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"shrink-0 basis-[70px] sm:basis-[120px]\">\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/us\/mike-pences-2024-campaign-is-six-figures-in-debt-5510969?ea_src=author_manual&#038;ea_med=related_stories\">\n<picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" https:><\/source><source type=\"image\/jpeg\" https:><\/source>\n<\/picture>\n<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&#8220;In his refusal\u2064 to honor requests honor requests by multiple state legislators in ke states to investigate and address demonstrable fraud and \u2064irregularities,\u200b Pence really alienated tens of millions of \u200dvoters. Since\u200b then he has continued to state wrongly that\u2062 he was being \u2063asked to overturn \u2062the election,&#8221; Mr. Johns explained.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;To this day, I think most\u2063 Trump voters\u200d saw that day that, when really\u200c forced to decide between \u200cestablishment sentiment \u2062and righting\u2063 the\u200d many grave wrongs in this nation, that \u200bhe\u2063 did not have the \u2062intestinal\u200d fortitude to do \u2063the right thing.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>With \u200dMr. \u2064Pence now\u200d out of office and off the campaign\u2064 trail, questions arise over what \u200dhis future\u200b entails.<\/p>\n<p>Any \u2062immediate return to frontline politics appears unlikely.\u2064 An Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs \u200dResearch poll found that \u206257 percent of Americans view Mr. Pence \u200bnegatively, with only 28 percent holding a positive view.<\/p>\n<p>It \u200bis clear, \u2064however, that Mr. Pence hopes to maintain some level of influence within the GOP.\u200b According to \u2064a recent \u2064report \u2062by the Associated Press, people close to Mr. Pence had &#8220;begun to feel\u200c that remaining a candidate risked diminishing his long-term standing\u200c in\u2062 the party&#8221; and\u2062 that remaining\u200c on the campaign trail &#8220;might affect his\u200b ability to remain\u2063 a leading voice in \u200dthe \u200dconservative movement.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Should Mr. Trump \u2064end up as the Republican\u2062 nominee, Mr. Pence&#8217;s\u200d limited\u200c sway within the Republican Party will likely only diminish further. The former president\u2064 has already ruled out \u200bchoosing him again as his running mate,\u2064 describing \u200chis \u2062actions on Jan. 6 as &#8220;political suicide.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Pence has so far refused to endorse Mr. Trump (or any other\u2064 primary candidate), although the former vice president has not ruled\u2062 out voting for \u200cthe \u200bformer president if he becomes the\u200c eventual nominee.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe should \u2064endorse \u2063me. I chose him, made him vice president,&#8221; Mr.\u200d Trump said, following Mr. Pence&#8217;s announcement last week at a Republican Jewish Coalition event in Las Vegas, Nevada. &#8220;But people in \u2062politics can be \u200dvery\u2062 disloyal.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> In light of his failed campaign, what challenges and considerations should Mike Pence take\u2062 into account when reassessing his future in politics<\/h2>\n<p><span>  \u200dAnd more about positioning himself \u2063as a moderate alternative \u200cto \u200bPresident \u2063Donald Trump.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Regardless of the reasons behind his campaign, it is clear that Mr. Pence&#8217;s bid for\u2062 the \u200bRepublican presidential nomination was ill-fated from the start. While he may have hoped to gain support by distancing himself from the controversial\u2063 president, it seems that Republican voters were not convinced.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Mr. Pence&#8217;s poor polling figures and lack of donors further highlight the lack of enthusiasm for \u200chis candidacy. Running\u200c for\u2064 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/will-rep-dean-phillips-beat-joe-biden\/\" title=\"Can Rep. Dean Phillips defeat Joe Biden?\">president requires substantial financial backing<\/a> and a \u200cstrong base\u200d of supporters, both of which Mr. Pence clearly lacked.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Furthermore, his decision to suspend his campaign before even reaching \u2063the first primary or caucus\u2063 raises questions\u200d about his commitment and\u2062 determination to win. It appears that Mr. Pence realized\u2063 the futility of his campaign and decided to cut his losses\u2062 early.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">In the \u2063end, Mr. \u200cPence&#8217;s failed bid for the Republican nomination serves as\u200d a cautionary tale for politicians\u2063 hoping to challenge\u2062 a sitting\u2062 president \u2062from their own party. While there may be discontent\u2064 and disagreements within a political party, it takes more than just opposition to secure the support of \u2064voters.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">To successfully run for president, a candidate must have a compelling message, a strong\u2062 base\u200b of supporters, and the financial resources to sustain a long and grueling campaign. Unfortunately for Mr. Pence, he lacked all three of these crucial elements.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">As the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/third-party-no-labels-planning-2024-nominating-convention-in-april\/\" title=\"No Labels, a third-party organization, plans to hold its 2024 nominating convention in April.\">2024 presidential election \u2064approaches<\/a>, it will be\u2063 interesting to see how \u200bother Republican candidates position themselves against the popular and influential former president, Donald Trump. The lessons learned from Mr. Pence&#8217;s failed campaign will likely influence their strategies and \u2063decisions.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Meanwhile, Mr. Pence will \u2064have to reassess\u200d his future\u2062 in politics and determine if \u2063another run for public office is in his best interest. \u200dThe road to political redemption may be a challenging one, but history has shown that politicians can make comebacks after unsuccessful presidential bids.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Ultimately, Mr. Pence&#8217;s failed campaign highlights the complexities and challenges of running for president, even for\u200c seasoned politicians. It serves as a reminder that political ambition\u2063 and personal aspirations must be tempered with a \u2063realistic assessment of one&#8217;s chances of \u200dsuccess.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When Mike Pence entered the race for the Republican presidential nomination, he presented himself as the anti-Trump candidate, refusing to challenge the 2020 election results. He aimed to gain support from voters who appreciated his stance against the former president&#8217;s demands.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2379,"featured_media":2089002,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[543],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2089001","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-epoch-times"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2089001","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2379"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2089001"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2089001\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2089002"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2089001"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2089001"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2089001"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}