KEENE, NH — Former Vice President Mike Pence emphasizes his support for Ukraine and makes it clear that he strongly disagrees with former President Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on an issue dividing the burgeoning Republican 2024 presidential nomination field .
Pence, commenting on Russia’s more than year-long war against Ukraine, said Thursday that “there’s a lot of discussion about it even within our party and that’s healthy.”
But the former vice president, who headlined a Republican fundraising dinner in New Hampshire, the state that holds the first primary and second overall game on the GOP presidential nomination calendar, stressed that “Republicans need to say clearly that we understand that America is the arsenal of democracy…we must continue to give the courageous Ukrainian military the support they need to drive Russia from their sovereign soil.”
Pence’s comments come days after DeSantis argued that protecting Ukraine is not a “vital” national interest for America.
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Former Vice President Mike Pence delivers a keynote address at the Cheshire County, New Hampshire GOP’s annual Lincoln-Reagan fundraising dinner on March 16, 2023 in Keene, NH (Fox news)
While many in the GOP’s traditional aggressive wing firmly support Ukraine and criticize President Biden’s administration for not doing enough to help Kiev, they face an increasingly vocal wing of anti-war voices from the MAGA wing of the GOP. party led by Trump. who remains the front runner in the early stages of the race for the GOP presidential nomination.
DeSantis, who currently remains on the sidelines of 2024 but now appears to be openly flirting with launching a presidential campaign while visiting Iowa and the other early election and primary states, wrote earlier this week that “while the U.S. has many vital national interests – securing our borders, addressing the preparedness crisis within our military, achieving energy security and independence, and controlling the economic, cultural and military power of the Chinese Communist Party – become further entangled in a territorial dispute between Ukraine and Russia is not one of them.”
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“The Biden administration’s virtual ‘blank check’ financing of this conflict for ‘as long as it takes,’ with no defined goals or accountability, is distracting from our country’s most pressing challenges,” the governor said in response to a statement. questionnaire from Fox. News anchor Tucker Carlson, who posted Carlson on Twitter.
Minutes after the keynote of the Cheshire County GOP’s annual Lincoln-Reagan fundraising dinner in Keene, Pence was asked by Fox News if Trump and DeSantis are wrong when it comes to Ukraine.
File photos of former President Donald Trump, left, and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. (Scott Eisen, Spencer Platt)
“I think anyone who believes that Vladimir Putin will stop if he takes Ukraine is in for something different,” Pence said. “I have met Vladimir Putin. It is clear to me … that he has returned to his efforts to restore the old Soviet sphere of influence.”
And noting DeSantis’ comments, the former vice president stressed “let me be very clear – the war in Ukraine is not a territorial dispute. It is a Russian invasion.”
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Pence argued that “if Vladimir Putin could catch up with Ukraine, it wouldn’t be too long before Russian tanks rolled into NATO countries where our militaries should be fighting.”
And Pence, gearing up for a likely run for the White House and saying he will make a decision by spring, stressed: “I will continue to be a strong voice for support for Ukraine and I will continue to support Ukraine. ” urge other Republicans – not just those considering running for president – but also our party’s leaders, to stand firm as the arsenal of democracy and the leader of the free world.”
The war of words over Ukraine is a possible harbinger of a policy clash as the number of nominations for the 2024 Republican presidential election grows.
Carlson sent a list of questions about Ukraine to a number of actual and potential Republican 2024 presidential candidates, including former President Donald Trump, DeSantis, Pence, former two-time governor of South Carolina and United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley, and others.
While they agree on policy when it comes to supporting Ukraine, Trump chided DeSantis. Pointing to then-Rep. DeSantis’ support for helping Ukraine in 2014, Trump claimed the governor “follows what I say. It’s a flip-flop. He was completely different. Whatever I want, he wants.”
Haley, who launched her 2024 campaign last month, disagreed with both Trump and DeSantis in her response.
“America is much better off with a Ukrainian victory than a Russian victory, including avoiding a wider war,” Haley argued. “If Russia wins, there is no reason to believe it will stop at Ukraine. And if Russia wins, its closest allies, China and Iran, will become more aggressive.”
Speaking to reporters, Pence was also asked if Trump should drop out of the race if indicted. Legal investigations targeting Trump appear to be intensifying, and possible indictments in the coming weeks could make him the first former president in US history to face criminal charges.
Pence didn’t directly answer the question, saying instead “it’s a free country. Everyone can make their own decisions.”
Former Vice President Mike Pence, a potential 2024 Republican presidential nominee, speaks with party activists in New Hampshire before delivering the keynote address of the Cheshire County GOP’s annual Lincoln-Reagan fundraising dinner on March 16, 2023, in Keene, NH (Fox news)
Pence was head of the fundraising gala in Keene after a closed-door meeting in Manchester, New Hampshire’s largest city, with a group of Republican activists and leaders. He was accompanied by two of his top advisers.
“His message was more about what we think. What matters to us. What are our priorities. He just listened and gave some feedback, but never said the words ‘I’m running,'” said a Republican activist who hosted the rally. attended and who requested anonymity to speak more freely, Fox News reported.
The early polls in the GOP nomination race indicate Trump is the frontrunner with DeSantis in second and everyone else well behind, in the mid to low single digits.
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But Juliana Bergeron, one of two New Hampshire committee members on the Republican National Committee, told Fox News, “I think there’s room for someone like a Mike Pence or Nikki Haley.”
And Bergeron, a former Cheshire County GOP chairman, said Republican voters in New Hampshire “I think they’re looking for a new generation of candidates.”
Paul Steinhauser is a political reporter from New Hampshire.
