Pence says he’s ‘had enough’ of Biden as he seeks to escape Trump’s shadow in Iowa

He did, however, include a reference to the January 6 riot that followed Trump’s speech, angering supporters who wanted Pence to reject election votes from certain states – and, after Pence’s refusal, marched on Capitol Hill in chanting: “Hang Mike dime.”

“The truth is we’ve been through a lot in the past year, a global pandemic, civil unrest, a dividing election, a tragic day in our nation’s capital,” Pence said.

In Des Moines, he criticized Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, complaining “of the damage they have caused in such a short time.”

“I came here today to say that after 177 days of open borders, higher taxes, runaway spending, police funding, abortion on demand, censorship of freedom of “expression, canceling our dearest freedoms, I have had enough. And the time has come … to stand up and fight against the agenda of the radical left,” Pence said.

The early stages of the 2024 Republican presidential primary are unfolding with the party’s biggest question – whether Trump will run again – looming on the horizon.

If he does not show up again, however, Republicans would start with a wide open field – a prospect that has led the party’s most ambitious figures to start traveling to the early voting states, making connections with activists, potential staff and GOP officials a year and a half before the 2022 midterm elections.

Critical Race Theory teaches children as young as kindergarten to be ashamed of their skin. Critical Race Theory is outright state-sanctioned racism, and every American should face it, every days, ”Pence said.

“And it is high time to abandon the left reflex of finding systemic racism in every institution in the country,” he said. “America is not a racist country. America is the fairest, noblest, and most inclusive nation that has ever existed on the face of the earth.”

Both received polite – but subdued – receptions from the crowd of hundreds of social conservatives.

Noem positioned herself in opposition to America under Biden, describing a country that she said “is built on hatred and division. By pitting people against each other.”

“It is a shame to see violence, crime and the lack of unity,” she said.

She bragged that South Dakota had not ordered any businesses to shut down during the coronavirus pandemic. “We didn’t take shelter in place. We didn’t mandate anything. We just trusted people,” she said.

After watching last year’s protests against racial injustice, Noem said, the state launched a week of advertising in an attempt to recruit law enforcement officers from out of state to work in South Dakota, a campaign she says has attracted the interest of 900 police officers in 41 states. . “We will continue to be a state that wraps its arms around our law enforcement officers,” Noem said.

Pompeo touted the role his faith played in foreign policy decision-making during his tenure as Trump’s top diplomat. He said the Biden administration’s unwinding of Trump-era policies “has been difficult for me to watch.”

Pompeo argued that Biden had not been tough enough on China and in his response to crime in American cities, and he complained that Democrats had not sufficiently supported the police.

He lambasted “the trash they try to teach in our schools today” – a reference to critical race theory, an increasingly common Republican target – and said the United States is not not “inherently and systematically racist”.

“We shouldn’t question our foundation. It was noble,” Pompeo said.

He added: “We are not a nation in decline. We are not a racist nation. We are a God-blessed Christian nation. Don’t let the awakened socialists bring you down.”