In a recent event that has sparked widespread attention, Karen Pence, the wife of former Vice President Mike Pence, refrained from acknowledging the arrival of President-elect Donald Trump and Melania Trump at the funeral of President Jimmy Carter held at the Washington National Cathedral.
Despite having worked closely with Melania Trump during their husbands' tenure, Karen Pence made no attempt to greet the incoming First Lady.
According to the Daily Mail, this incident marks a significant moment in the strained relationship between the Pences and the Trumps, which has been fraught since the Capitol attack on January 6, 2021. The tension stems from Trump's insistence that Pence reject Electoral College votes from swing states won by President Joe Biden during the joint session of Congress certifying the 2020 election. Pence's refusal to comply with Trump's demand led to a backlash from Trump's supporters, who chanted 'hang Mike Pence' and erected makeshift gallows outside the Capitol Building amid the riot.
The January 6 House select committee discovered that a Proud Boys informant had informed the FBI that if members of the group had found Pence that day, they would have killed him. Despite the imminent danger, Pence chose to stay within the Capitol, taking refuge in a garage-like structure deemed a secure location within the complex. "The vice president did not want to take any chance that the world would see the vice president of the United States fleeing the United States Capitol," Greg Jacob, Pence's counselor, testified to committee members in 2022.
Following his departure from office, Pence's political career has been somewhat stagnant. He briefly contested against Trump for the 2024 nomination but withdrew from the race in October 2023. Trump, the clear frontrunner, declined to participate in the GOP primary debates, and thus, the two men never shared the stage. Trump chose Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance as his running mate for the 2024 ticket, replacing Pence.
Pence refrained from endorsing either Trump or Democratic nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris. Instead, his political action committee funded advertisements encouraging Americans to vote for Republicans on issues ahead of the 2024 election.
On the fourth anniversary of January 6, Pence praised Harris for chairing the joint session to certify Trump's victory, calling it "particularly admirable that Vice President Harris would preside over the certification of a presidential election that she lost." He also extended his congratulations and prayers to President Donald J. Trump and Vice President J. D. Vance on their election to lead the nation, stating, "I welcome the return of order and civility to these historic proceedings."
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