Former Vice President Mike Pence spoke at the Des Moines Register political soapbox at the Iowa State Fair on Thursday as his former boss and 2024 rival, ex-President Donald Trump, fumed on social media over their 2020 election disagreement.
The two men have long disagreed over what role the former vice president had in refusing to certify the 2020 election results after President Joe Biden won. Pence has consistently said he was obligated to follow the Constitution and certify the results. Trump has argued Pence had the power to send votes he disputed back to the states.
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Pence had skirted around fully taking on Trump as he marched closer to launching a presidential bid, but in the wake of last week's federal grand jury indictment against the former president over his efforts to overturn the 2020 election and the subsequent Jan. 6. Capitol riot, Pence had stepped up his pointed criticisms against Trump. His old boss was not amused.
"I never asked Mike Pence to “disregard the Constitution.” Nor did I tell him that he was “too honest.” He is under great pressure and getting very bad advice from Marc “Long” and perhaps some of his other advisers," Trump wrote on Truth Social while Pence was speaking to the Iowa crowd. "His Poll numbers have just gone down from an already anemic level. Liddle’ Mike now wants to be a tough guy. He could have had greatness, but chose another path!"
Meanwhile, Pence acknowledged his combative relationship with Trump during a question-and-answer portion when an attendee asked about why he “committed treason” on Jan. 6. "There’s almost no idea more un-American than the notion that any one person could pick the American president,” Pence said after referencing Article 2 of the Constitution that states he had to certify the electoral votes after an election as president of the Senate. "The American presidency belongs to the American people and the American people alone."
"I'll always believe by God's grace I did my duty that day," Pence continued. "People deserve to know that on that day, the former president asked me to choose him over my oath to the Constitution. I choose the Constitution, and I always will."
The spat between Trump and Pence comes ahead of the Republican National Committee's first primary debate later this month on Aug. 23. Pence's campaign announced this week that he qualified for the debate after meeting the fundraising and polling qualifications. But Trump has refused to sign the RNC's loyalty oath and said he will make a decision on whether to attend the debate by next week.
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Pence will later participate in a “Fair Side Chat” with Gov. Kim Reynolds (R-IA) on Friday, as are most 2024 rivals, excluding Trump, who has publicly feuded with Reynolds over her neutrality in the primary race. The former president also skipped the Des Moines Register political soapbox.
At the debate, Pence will likely reiterate a message he stressed in Iowa: "We need new leadership in the White House but I also believe we need new leadership in the Republican Party."