As the Democratic National Convention came to a rousing close and the Republicans geared up to start their four-day affair next week, Vice President Mike Pence went on a whopping five morning shows on Friday to help make the case for another four years of Trump.
On Fox & Friends, Pence fielded softball questions about Goodyear tires and Star Wars metaphors. And on CNN’s New Day, he was left squirming about Trump’s disturbing embrace of QAnon.
The vice president dramatically shook his head as CNN’s John Berman reported the fact that the FBI has labeled that conspiracy-theory cult a domestic terror threat.
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“This is a group that peddles theories that say that some politicians and high-profile Hollywood celebrities are members of a satanic cult, that are also cannibals,” Berman continued. “They say that coronavirus is being disseminated by George Soros and Bill Gates with the help of 5G networks. The president says they ‘love America.’ So how do those beliefs embody a love of America?”
“You said the president seemed to embrace that,” Pence replied, clearly annoyed with the question. “I didn’t hear that. I heard the president talk about, he appreciates people who support him.”
“Do you believe they love America?” Berman asked Pence directly. When the vice president claimed to not “know anything about that conspiracy theory,” the host shot back, “How can you not know about it, given how much it’s been in the news? How can you not know about it at this point?”
Pence then claimed that “we dismiss conspiracy theorists out of hand” in the Trump White House, but as he desperately tried to pivot the conversation away from QAnon, Berman wouldn’t let him.
“So Mr. Vice President, you didn’t answer my question,” Berman said, quoting what other Republicans have said about QAnon’s outlandish views. “Will you call what they espouse ‘conspiracy theories’?” he asked.
“I just did, John!” Pence exclaimed. “I called it a conspiracy theory. I said I don’t have any time for it, and I don’t know anything about it. And frankly, honestly, John, I get it. I get that the media, particularly CNN, chases after shiny objects.”
“This is no shiny object,” Berman replied.
Pence was actually pushed even further towards condemning the group during a separate interview with CBS This Morning. After snapping at that host for “spending time on a major network” talking about QAnon, the vice president was finally forced to say: “I dismiss it out of hand.”
