Pence to Promote Classical Conservatism, Warn of Populism in New Hampshire Speech

Former Vice President Mike Pence will deliver a speech in New Hampshire on Wednesday afternoon where he will promote conservatism and warn populism, like liberalism, leads to “ruin,” an advisor detailed.

Pence will speak at St. Anselm College around 2:00 p.m. ET.

He will draw a dichotomy between the brand of classical conservatism he promotes versus the populist movement, which has roots dating back to the Tea Party days and has blossomed largely into the MAGA Republican coalition. 

“The former vice president will say that there’s a fundamental divide between … limited government conservatism and populism, and that divide is unbridgeable, that populism and liberalism are on the same road to ruin,” a campaign adviser said on a press call Tuesday as ABC News noted.

The speech comes as former President Donald Trump and his populist agenda sit atop the polls, while entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy surges with his “America First 2.0” agenda he pledges would be even more populist than Trump’s platform.

But the advisor said the scope of the speech goes far beyond Ramaswamy’s candidacy and messaging. 

“And for those who may mistakenly think this is targeted at Vivek, that would be much too small and interpretation of this speech,” the person said per ABC News.

Pence offered a taste of his position Wednesday morning during an appearance on Fox News Channel’s America’s Newsroom, where he accused Trump and “some of his imitators” of moving away from conservative values, including in the realm of foreign policy, fiscal responsibility, and the life movement.

There is a push in this Republican primary to, to move us away from our party’s historic commitment to American leadership on the world stage to a commitment to fiscal responsibility and reform in the face of a massive national debt crisis. And many of those people I shared the stage with including my former running mate who wasn’t there want to marginalize the right to life and relegate it to his states only issue. 

Pence, “with great humility,” told FNC’s Bill Hemmer he sees himself as “the most proven, the most consistent, the most qualified and the most tested conservative in this race.”