Mike Pence says: "GOP’s populist turn from conservatism isn’t permanent," things will go back to "traditional conservatism" post-Trump.

Ernest Luning 07/31/2026

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Colorado Politics: … What’s the state of the conservative movement these days, and how does the president’s current term — including broad-based tariffs, move toward nationalizing some American companies and imposing price controls on some sectors of the economy — how does that fit?

Former Vice President Mike Pence: I think our politics are changing on both sides of the aisle….

…There’s a new threat to the conservative movement that comes from the populist right. …[W]hen you look at the Trump-Pence years, we governed on that broad-based conservative agenda that’s really defined the Republican Party since the days of Ronald Reagan. … [W]e rebuilt the military, we cut taxes, rolled back regulations, unleashed American energy, and we put a priority on the right to life and religious liberty, and appointed conservatives to the Supreme Court who [overturned] Roe v. Wade ….

But in the intervening years,… largely driven by that populist sentiment that’s advocated for more protectionist policies when it comes to the economy — broad-based tariffs on friend and foe alike…; price controls on everything from from pharmaceuticals to to consumer credit; the nationalization of American businesses. These are all things that would have frankly never been embraced during the years of our administration, but they’ve become commonplace during the second Trump administration.

And on foreign policy, … Here [2d term], you’ve seen … stops and starts in support for Ukraine,…. But I do commend the president for being the first president in modern history to take the fight directly to Iran …

… [abortion access through pills…etc.]…"[I]t’s one of the reasons I wrote the book What Conservatives Believe, and my foundation in Washington D.C. …American people deserve a party that hews to those principles of a strong defense, limited government, traditional moral values. Andwe’regoing to be championing those in the Republican Party in the days ahead.

CP:When you’re talking about the right to life being a centerpiece of the conservative movement and the Republican Party,…

Pence: … The appointment of a pro-abortion secretary of Health and Human Services in Robert Kennedy Jr. was a disappointment to me,… abortion pill that Joe Biden made available by mail … deeply troubling. …

CP: You’ve noted …that the president reacted differently to some of the same scenarios between his two terms — opposing the sale of U.S. Steel to the Japanese Nippon Steel in the first term, then OK’ing it, and… taking a small share for the government in his second term. …Did the president change his mind or did the intellectual underpinnings of the folks around him change?

Pence: … I would tell you the cabinet thatwe surrounded the president with in our four yearswas a conservative cabinet.

…[F]ormer Education Secretary Bill Bennett … “I’ll tell you, this is a lot more conservative cabinet than Ronald Reagan’s.” …

CP: The party has taken a more populous turn, as you’ve said, over the last several election cycles, including in primaries, Republican voters — sometimes at Donald Trump’s urging, in Louisiana, Indiana, Kentucky — have been turning to very different kind of candidates than the party did before.

Does the Republican Party, grounded in what you’ve identified as the bedrock conservative principles — free market, free enterprise, and so forth — does that still exist? Is just that waiting for time to pass to reemerge, or has there been a fundamental kind of realignment?

Pence: Well, there’s no question that the president has enormous sway over Republican primary voters across the country, but I see that more as the well-earned gratitude that people feel for what the president’s endured over the last 10 years.… We saw the lawfare that took place in between the first and second administrations, and just the ongoing political assault from the American left and the media, I think, has generated a great deal of understandable loyalty and deference to the president. And you certainly saw that in primaries from Louisiana to Texas, even to Indiana in our state legislative races.

But I think it would be a mistake to then assume that voters are embracing a different philosophy of government, a departure from the traditional conservatism that has defined our party for 50 years, and I think that’s why the debate over 2028 will begin about 60 seconds after the midterm elections are called.

… [moar] …

https://www.coloradopolitics.com/2026/07/31/qa-with-mike-pence-former-vice-president-says-gops-populist-turn-from-conservatism-isnt-permanent/