Vice President Mike Pence is obviously a staunch, mainstream conservative, a fact that makes the idea of President Donald Trump leaving office almost more terrifying than if he were to remain in power. After all, Pence would be next in line. The man who seems fairly stoic, however, apparently has a very frightening side.
According to Politico, Pence dropped his “Aw, shucks” demeanor while discussing the Republican health care bill in a closed doors meeting, and it was enough to bring several federal lawmakers to tears.
Politico’s report on Pence is a fascinating one, describing Pence’s strategy as a “tightrope act” and calling Pence a “quiet killer” who is beloved by President Trump. A senior White House administrator told Politico:
“Think about this: the president likes people who don’t showboat, who don’t call attention to themselves. And the president loves killers—he loves people who get things done… Mike Pence is the quiet killer in this White House. And Trump loves him for it.”
That killer side showed when Pence met with members of the Freedom Caucus, the ultraconservative group that met in secret to discuss what to do with the Republican replacement for the Affordable Care Act.
The report states:
“Nobody seems to know how Pence discovered where the House Freedom Caucus was meeting. … They wanted to plot their next move in secret; to avoid leaks, no aides, other lawmakers or White House officials were told of their location. Not long after they had gathered, however, the door was flung open and in marched Pence. He was accompanied by Trump’s chief of staff, Reince Priebus, and neither man was smiling. … ‘I was the Freedom Caucus before the Freedom Caucus existed,’ Pence told them, his voice rising, according to multiple people who were in the room. ‘Don’t try to tell me this bill isn’t conservative enough.'”
Although Pence fighting for the ultraconservative plan should not be surprising, it is the next part of the report that is the most shocking:
“It was the most animated they had ever seen him. And it worked: after Pence abruptly exited the meeting, and several grown men had broken into tears because of the tension present in the room, a chorus of Freedom Caucus members informed Chairman Meadows that they would now support the legislation if a vote were held. [emphasis added]”
There you have it – a man who won’t eat dinner with a woman other than his wife can apparently be so frightening that he can bring his colleagues to tears. Maybe that’s why all those students walked out when he spoke at Notre Dame? Have a look at that one below (after the jump):
Featured image via Flickr user Gage Skidmore / CC BY-SA 2.0.
