Karen Pence steps up: ‘Put me in, coach’
Long solidly at her husband’s side, now she’s a 2020 force on her own
WASHINGTON – Karen Pence was a regular presence at her husband’s side during the 2016 campaign, whispering encouraging words into Mike Pence’s ear before he stepped on stage, leading the vice presidential team in prayer before big moments and always clasping her husband’s hand before joining him in the spotlight.
Though Pence’s support for her husband – with whom she has long been a full political partner – was clear, it was less certain how she felt about Donald Trump.
“I think now the campaign is starting to realize that I want to be part of the campaign. I want to go and do what I can and do my part.”
Karen Pence
As the reelection campaign for 2020 gears up, she’s not leaving any room for doubt.
Pence has expanded her presence on social media, is participating in “Women for Trump” events and is hitting the campaign trail solo. She headlined a fundraiser in September for Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds in addition to traveling with her husband, as she did on a Kentucky trip recently.
“I think now the campaign is starting to realize that I want to be part of the campaign. I want to go and do what I can and do my part,” she tells USA TODAY. “And so they’re sending things my way more and more. And they are things that I’m like: ‘I can go. I can go do this. Put me in, coach.’ ”
Since moving in to the vice president’s residence, Pence has had to navigate the nonelected but public role of second lady in which her down-home image of a pet lover, mother of a Marine and fierce protector of her husband has sometimes clashed with criticism of her views on homosexuality and questions about her alliance with Trump.
Karen Pence was apoplectic after the release in 2016 of an “Access Hollywood” recording of Trump bragging about grabbing women’s genitals, according to the book “American Carnage: On the Front Lines of the Republican Civil War and the Rise of President Trump” by Politico reporter Tim Alberta.
A recently published book on Mike Pence, suggests that Karen agreed to stick it out under the expectation that Trump would probably lose, setting up Pence for his own 2020 bid. When Trump won, Karen twice rebuffed her husband’s celebratory kiss on election night, according to “Piety & Power: Mike Pence and the Taking of the White House” by Tom LoBianco, a reporter who covered Pence when he was governor of Indiana.
Karen Pence said she’s puzzled at how someone could have gotten that impression. She remembers the excitement of election night, as well as the exhaustion of the early morning hours when the race was called.
“So all I can figure is someone must have seen me make a face or something like ‘I’m hungry’ or ‘I’m tired’ or something and decided I was disappointed in the race,” Pence said. “I don’t know where that came from. I love being part of this ticket, part of this administration.”
Pence has plenty of solo campaign experience from when her husband ran for governor and from his multiple campaigns for Congress. She downplays her heft on the national ticket, calling herself “kind of the low man on the totem pole.”
“Mike likes to say, ‘If you want hundreds, you invite Mike Pence. If you want thousands, you invite Donald Trump,’ ” she said. “So for me, it’s maybe like 100 or 200.”
In Utah, where she’ll do a campaign event this month, as well as one in Nevada, Pence may receive a warmer welcome than Trump would have.
Though it’s a conservative state, Utah has a disproportionate number of Republicans who are lukewarm on Trump, said Utah State University political science professor Damon Cann. The Pences represent the more traditional Republican brand.
Having a person of faith state the case for Trump is helpful in the heavily Mormon state, he said.
In addition to her clout with Christian conservatives, Pence may be most needed to shore up Trump’s support with women.
Trump’s chances of reelection may hinge on boosting his support with women voters, particularly in the suburbs where warning signs flashed for the president in the 2018 midterms and Tuesday’s off-year elections.
Trump is “empowering” women, Pence argues, through the strong economy.
“If you wanted someone to improve the job rate, he did. If you wanted someone to strengthen the military, he did,” she said. “The unemployment rate amongst women is lower than it’s ever been. And that’s what women care about.”
After her many years in the public spotlight, Pence realizes scrutiny comes with the territory.
Pence said the lack of privacy is something she’ll probably never get used to, but the benefits of her position outweigh the negatives.
“To know that there’s momentum behind one of the issues that I picked is humbling,” she said. “So if people say negative things about me about something they truly just misunderstand, I just have to let it roll off my back.”
Trump is “empowering” women, Pence argues, through the strong economy.