ELECTION/MIKE PENCE/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “When Donald Trump’s reelection team shamelessly acknowledged during a World Series campaign commercial that America’s 45th president is ‘no Mr. Nice Guy,’ it was doing more than shock-and-awe advertising. Noticeably absent from the 30-second spot was the president’s genteel sidekick: Mike Pence. Save for a Situation Room photo used to show voters that Trump is ‘obliterating ISIS,’ the vice president was unseen and unheard — his invisibility every bit as calculated as the ad itself. For Pence to be an effective surrogate in 2020, campaign officials say his reputation must be preserved. If the goal is to build a winning coalition that includes seniors, suburban women and swing-state residents suffering from Trump fatigue, someone has to be the nice guy…It’s the same good cop, bad cop routine voters saw in 2016, but it will be even more pronounced on the camp.”
–Gabby Orr, “Trump team positions Pence as the antidote to anti-Trump animus,” Politico, December 2, 2019 5:04 am