Mike Pence has said that the Republican Party has “better choices” than Donald Trump for 2024 and refused to rule out his own White House run – in a stinging rebuke just hours before the former president makes his so-called “special announcement”.
The former vice president took a swipe at Mr Trump during a sit-down interview with ABC’s David Muir on Monday, where he hinted that the American people could reject the former president in an effort to move away from divisiveness.
“I think that’s up to the American people,” he said, when asked if he believes Mr Trump should ever be president again.
“But I think we’ll have better choices in the future. People in this country actually get along pretty well once you get out of politics.
“And I think they want to see their national leader start to reflect that same – that same compassion and generosity of spirit.”
He added: “And I think, so in the days ahead, I think there will be better choices.”
Mr Pence, who was Mr Trump’s right-hand man during his time in the White House until the former president turned on him over his refusal to support his 2020 election lies, went on to reveal that he is mulling his own 2024 run.
“For me and my family, we will be reflecting about what our role is in that,” he said, adding: “We’re giving it consideration in our house. Prayerful consideration.”
Mr Pence’s comments make him the latest in a growing number of Republicans who have indicated that they won’t support Mr Trump if he makes a 2024 White House bid.
The former president has shouldered much of the blame for the party’s disappointing midterms – after the anticipated “red wave” failed to materialise and numerous Trump-endorsed candidates and 2020 election deniers were rejected by voters across the country.
The right-wing media has also come out in force, with Rupert Murdoch’s empire including Fox News and The New York Post cutting ties with the former president and throwing their support behind Ron DeSantis to lead the party in 2024.
Despite many Republicans turning their backs on Mr Trump, he is believed to be plowing on with his plans for a 2024 run anyway, making a “special announcement” at Mar-a-Lago at 9pm ET on Tuesday.
In Monday’s interview, Mr Pence also said that he was “angry” with the former president over the January 6 attack on the US Capitol and admitted he “can’t account for what the president was doing” in the hours where he refused to call off the rioters.
Prior to January 6, he said he told Mr Trump that he had lost the election to Joe Biden “many times” – but he refused to believe it and continued to push his false claims of election fraud.
In a previously-released clip of the interview, Mr Pence slammed the former president for “endangering” him and his family that day.
“The president’s words were reckless. It was clear he decided to be part of the problem,” he said.
