Former Vice President Mike Pence on Sunday said he was “disappointed” in Mark Meadows’s performance as former President Donald Trump’s chief of staff.
During an appearance to promote his new book on NBC’s Meet the Press, Pence said he was “disappointed” with Meadows’s performance, “particularly at the end” and that “his tenure as chief of staff did not serve the president well.”
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“From early on, it was clear” that Meadows “had talked the president out of the White House coronavirus press briefings.” Pence said he thought the COVID-19 briefings served the country well as “more is more” when it comes to providing people with information during a public health emergency.
“But once we went through that early difficult period with COVID and the new chief of staff started his tenure, the pressure began a month or so into the pandemic to move away from the briefings.”
“The president’s got to rely on his senior team,” Pence said, describing the chief of staff as a “gatekeeper.”
“What frankly all the best White House chiefs of staff have done throughout history is make sure that only people that get into the Oval Office are people that have the credibility to be there,” Pence said.
“What frankly all the best White House chiefs of staff have done throughout history is make sure that only people that get into the Oval Office are people that have the credibility to be there,” Pence said.
Pence said he thought Gen. John Kelly and Mick Mulvaney were more successful Trump-era chiefs of staff than Meadows.
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During the interview, Pence did not indicate whether he planned to run for president, saying, “I’ll keep you posted” and noting he thinks people will have “better choices” in the future.
Trump announced his candidacy for the 2024 presidential election on Nov. 16.
