Pence: Midterms Were a 'Reckoning,' Voters 'Rejected' Trump's Policies

Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” former Vice President Mike Pence said voters rejected President Donald Trump’s second-term policies in the midterm elections. Host Kristen Welker asked, “Do you believe President Trump bears responsibility for the losses that Republicans suffered?” Pence said, “Well, first, let me do what we do on the gridiron, and that is give the other side their due. Democrats did what they needed to do in this election. But like millions of Republicans, I’m deeply disappointed to see so many men and women of great caliber and leadership turned away and turned out in this massive defeat in the midterm elections. You know, as I look at it, it wasn’t just a rout, it was a reckoning. And I do believe, in many respects, our voters rejected President Trump’s embrace of protectionist tariffs, $41 trillion national debt that continues to rise, the embrace of appeasement with regard to Russia and now even Iran, marginalizing the right to life, and then the whole era of self-dealing and corruption around this administration, I think, had a real impact on our voters.” He added, “And as I traveled across the country in the last week, I am convinced our voters didn’t turn left, I think they were turned off.” Follow Pam Key on X @pamkeyNEN