6 takeaways from former Vice President Mike Pence's CNN town hall - CNN

CNN  — 

Former Vice President Mike Pence successful a CNN municipality hall connected Wednesday refused to perpetrate his enactment to former President Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign and near the doorway unfastened to seeking the Republican information himself.

Speaking a time aft the merchandise of his memoir, “So Help Me God,” Pence was mostly coy erstwhile discussing his ain plans portion touting the Trump administration’s argumentation agenda.

But Pence was much nonstop erstwhile asked astir the January 6, 2021, riot astatine the US Capitol. The erstwhile vice president called it “the astir hard time of my nationalist life.”

Pence besides revealed much astir his idiosyncratic feelings astir that time and his views connected the authorities of American authorities successful the aftermath of a presidency that helium said did not extremity well.

Here are takeaways from the municipality hall:

Asked astir Trump’s caller run for president, which helium announced Tuesday, Pence said helium believed that determination would beryllium “better choices” connected the ballot successful 2 years.

Pence near unfastened the anticipation that 1 of those preferable options, arsenic helium saw it, mightiness beryllium him.

“I’ll support you posted,” Pence told CNN’s Jake Tapper, who moderated the event.

Moments earlier, arsenic helium grappled with the Trump question, Pence said, “I deliberation it’s clip for caller enactment successful this state that volition bring america unneurotic astir our highest ideals.”

Pressed by Tapper astir his future, Pence replied, “There whitethorn beryllium idiosyncratic other successful that contention I’d similar more.”

It was, Pence said, the “most hard time of my nationalist life.”

“I thought it was important, arsenic vice president, that I connection my proposal and my counsel to the president confidentially. And we did,” Pence said of his relation that day, erstwhile Trump and others allied with the then-president tried to person him to motorboat an unconstitutional bid to artifact oregon overturn the predetermination results.

Pence said his determination to disregard Trump’s entreaties was rooted successful thing deeper than their relationship.

“I had 1 higher loyalty, and that was to God and the Constitution. And that’s what acceptable successful question the confrontation that would travel to walk connected January 6 due to the fact that I had taken an oath to the Constitution of the United States,” Pence said.

Breaking with the antheral who selected him arsenic a runningmate up of the 2016 predetermination and elevated him to wrong a susurration of the Oval Office “was difficult,” Pence said.

“But I’ll ever believe,” helium added, “that we did our work that time upholding the Constitution of the United States and the laws of this state and the peaceful transportation of power.”

In the days that followed, Pence said, helium was upset with Trump implicit the then-president’s relation successful the deadly insurrection.

“The president’s words and tweet that time were reckless,” Pence said. “They endangered my household and each the radical astatine the Capitol.”

But Pence besides unopen down immoderate speculation arsenic to whether helium would attest earlier the House prime committee investigating January 6, saying that “Congress has nary close to my testimony.” He said it would acceptable a “terrible precedent” for a legislature committee to summon a vice president to sermon deliberations held astatine the White House, arguing that it would interruption the separation of powers and “erode the dynamic” betwixt a president and vice president.

After CNN played footage of January 6 rioters chanting, “Hang Mike Pence,” the erstwhile vice president said helium was saddened to spot the images again, but that successful the moment, “it angered me.”

Pence, who moved to a unafraid determination arsenic the Capitol was breached, said helium told Secret Service that helium would not leave, insisting helium stay astatine his post, successful portion due to the fact that helium did not privation the mob to spot his motorcade speeding away.

“But frankly, erstwhile I saw those images, and erstwhile I work a tweet that President Trump issued, saying that I lacked courageousness successful that moment, It angered maine greatly,” Pence said. But, helium added, “I didn’t person clip for it.”

After years lasting by Trump’s broadside done assorted scandals and crises – and besides benefiting from the erstwhile president’s governmental emergence – Pence said helium had decided that, successful this fight, they would instrumentality other sides.

“The President had decided successful that infinitesimal to beryllium a portion of the problem,” said Pence, who told Tapper helium “was determined to beryllium portion of the solution.”

Pence past discussed gathering the Republican and Democratic enactment of the House and Senate connected a league call, reaching retired to Pentagon brass and Justice Department officials “to surge further resources” to assistance Capitol Hill constabulary officers.

Congress yet reconvened connected the aforesaid time and, aft Republican challenges to the count, yet confirmed Biden arsenic the adjacent president.

“We demonstrated to the American radical and the satellite the spot of our institutions (and) the resilience of our democracy,” Pence said. “But those memories, those images volition ever beryllium with me.”

Pence described successful vivid item his meetings with Trump successful the days aft the riot astatine the Capitol. When helium archetypal saw Trump astatine the White House days aft January 6, helium said the then-president instantly asked astir his household and whether they were OK.

Though it was astatine likelihood with the nationalist perceptions of Trump, Pence said, helium believed that Trump was “deeply remorseful successful that moment.”

“I could archer helium was saddened by what had happened,” Pence said. “I encouraged him to pray. He told maine galore times that helium was a believer, and I told him to crook to Jesus hoping that helium would find the comfortableness determination – and that I was uncovering successful that moment.”

In the days that followed, Pence said helium saw Trump for different gathering and that the president was inactive “downcast.” After they finished talking done medication business, Pence said, “I reminded him that I was praying for him” and Trump was “dismissive astir it.”

“As our gathering came to a close, I stood up,” Pence said. “I looked astatine him and I said, I conjecture there’s conscionable 2 things we’ll astir apt ne'er hold on. And helium looked up and said, ‘What?’”

“I referred to my relation connected January 6,” Pence said. “And past I said, ‘Never gonna halt praying for you.’”

“He smiled faintly and said, ‘That’s right. Don’t ever change.’ And we parted amicably arsenic overmuch arsenic we could successful the aftermath of those events.”

In lamenting Republicans’ underwhelming show successful the 2022 midterms, Pence observed that candidates who talked astir the aboriginal outshone those who focused much connected “relitigating the past.”

“And I expect that’s going to beryllium taken to bosom by Republicans,” Pence said.

Asked why, then, helium chose to run alongside predetermination deniers – including GOP Senate nominees Don Bolduc successful New Hampshire and Blake Masters successful Arizona, some of whom mislaid past week – Pence said enactment loyalty trumped different concerns.

“I’ve often said, ‘I’m a Christian, a blimpish and a Republican – successful that order. But I americium a Republican,” Pence said, “and erstwhile Republican superior voters had chosen their nominees I went retired and traveled to 35 states implicit the past twelvemonth and a fractional to spot if we could elite a Republican bulk successful the House, Senate, elite Republican governors each crossed the country.”

Pence added that his quality connected the stump with a campaigner “didn’t mean, arsenic it hasn’t meant successful the past, that I agreed with each connection oregon each presumption candidates that I’m supporting successful the Republican Party person taken.”

He besides tried to marque a mendacious equivalence betwixt Trump’s lies astir predetermination fraud successful 2020 and Hillary Clinton’s comments aft 2016, noting that she said “Donald Trump was not a morganatic president, for years.”

“I deliberation there’s been acold excessively overmuch questioning of elections, not conscionable successful 2020 but successful 2016,” helium said.

Pence has precise cautiously crafted his mentation of the events starring up to January 6, during that day’s onslaught connected the Capitol and successful his conversations with Trump afterward – and isn’t deviating from that explanation.

As helium has unspooled those events, Pence’s comments person been virtually identical successful his book, successful CNN’s municipality hallway and successful interviews with different quality networks successful caller days.

He’d made wide what helium is consenting to say. Among the cardinal points: That Trump listened to the incorrect lawyers successful the lead-up to January 6; that helium was “angry” watching the onslaught connected the Capitol; that helium near Trump with a committedness to proceed to commune for him; and that the 2 nary longer talk.

But it’s conscionable arsenic wide wherever Pence won’t go: He won’t uncover immoderate simmering resentment with Trump, saying his religion commands forgiveness. He won’t spot blasted afloat connected Republicans for agitating the party’s basal with falsehoods astir predetermination fraud. He won’t legitimize the enactment of the House committee investigating the events surrounding that day.

Pence’s slow, measured transportation of a accordant connection is simply a diagnostic that traces backmost to his days arsenic a self-styled “Rush Limbaugh connected decaf” blimpish speech vigor big successful Indiana.

It’s an attack that has remained accordant done his full governmental career, including 12 years successful the House and 4 years arsenic Indiana governor. Pence often repeats virtually the aforesaid connection – enactment by line, paragraph by paragraph – adjacent erstwhile that connection doesn’t straight reply the question helium was asked.

This communicative has been updated with further developments.