Mike Pence to address SC conservatives in potential first 2024 GOP presidential test
Former Vice President Mike Pence will give his first major speech in front of hundreds of South Carolina conservatives in Columbia next month in what could be his first potential 2024 Republican presidential primary test.
Pence will address between 450 to 600 ticketed guests of the Palmetto Family, a conservative nonprofit that lobbies the state Legislature based in Columbia, on April 29 at the Columbia Convention Center, confirmed Dave Wilson, Palmetto Family’s president.
A Pence aide told The Associated Press that Pence’s speech will focus on traditional conservative talking points and accomplishments of the Trump administration.
Palmetto Family was founded in 1993 to “persuasively present biblical principles.” The group successfully lobbied the General Assembly this year to pass the state’s most restrictive abortion law, now being challenged in court, and has helped to move other conservative-based legislation through the General Assembly.
The Associated Press was the first to report Pence’s South Carolina travels.
“We believe in a marketplace of ideas, and are wanting to see as many people engaged in the discussion as possible,” Wilson told The State Monday. “And we appreciate the fact that Vice President Pence wants to have a conversation with conservatives in South Carolina to help us understand what has gone on in Washington, but also to encourage and inspire not only this generation, but the next generation as to how they can engage and be involved in what happens in the federal, state and local level.”
The former Indiana governor has done hardly any big public speaking events since leaving Washington.
Pence turned down an invitation to speak last month at the Conservative Political Action Conference, instead has been keeping a much lower profile than former President Donald Trump and working for the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, and Young America’s Foundation.
Pence’s April speech will surely fuel speculation over whether he plans to run for on the GOP presidential primary ticket in 2024.
South Carolina is home to the first-in-the-South presidential primary, and speaking to hundreds of South Carolina conservatives will be a foundational test of whether Pence could be a favorite of conservative, religious groups.
The former vice president has remained mum on his 2024 plans, particularly after the Jan. 6 Capitol riot in which Pence and his family were rushed out of the Senate after rioters breached the federal complex as Congress was set to confirm Joe Biden as president. Some of the rioters were caught on video chanting, “Hang Mike Pence!” and in a park near the White House that day, former President Donald Trump insisted several times that Pence had the power to reject the election’s outcome.
Wilson told The State Pence’s speech will be as wide open as he would like, a “place for him to begin to have a discussion about the issues important to conservatives, not only in South Carolina but across the country to understand how conservatives engage in what is going on in public policy.”
SC GOP planning ‘CPAC-style’ event in fall
South Carolina’s Republican Party will waste no time this year keeping the 2024 focus on the Palmetto State.
State party chairman Drew McKissick told The State the party is planning a “CPAC-style” conference this fall in Myrtle Beach.
An exact date and location has not been picked yet, but McKissick said, like CPAC, the conference will be geared toward grassroots activists, training on issues and education, giving Republicans an opportunity to hear from national groups and even candidates.
The Post and Courier of Charleston was the first to report about the conference.
It would be the first of its kind in South Carolina, giving voters the chance to hear directly from notable Republican elected officials and potential 2024 presidential hopefuls. And it puts South Carolina on the national stage, keeping the media focus on a state that will help elect the presumptive nominee.
“We’re the first-in-the-South primary state, and we intend to keep it that way,” McKissick said. “This is one other way underlining that fact.”
McKissick said putting the conference in Myrtle Beach has more to do with spreading Republican events across the state and giving attendees a chance to get out of Columbia in an area that boasts beaches and good golf courses. But it also happens to be home to what will be a contentious GOP primary in 2022, when U.S. Rep. Tom Rice is up for reelection.
The Horry County Republican faces a tough primary after he voted to impeach Trump following the Jan. 6 Capitol riots.
At the Darlington Raceway Friday, Rice said he hopes Trump does not run again despite his popularity.
“I don’t think that 74 million will be 74 million if it (an election) was today,” Rice said, referring to the number of votes Trump received to Biden’s roughly 79 million in November.
Once a loyal ally who voted on Trump’s policies more than 90% of the time, Rice said he would rather Trump be a positive influence to help build the party moving forward.
“I hope he doesn’t run again, because I don’t think he can win with what’s happened. ... If the election was redone today, Joe Biden would get a much larger percentage of the vote and Donald Trump would get a much smaller percentage of the vote.”
Reporter Chase Karacostas contributed to this report.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
This story was originally published March 8, 2021 at 10:10 AM.
