What former VP Mike Pence said as he received the JFK Profile in Courage Award
Former Vice President Mike Pence received the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award for certifying the results of the 2020 presidential election and ensuring the peaceful transfer of power on the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
In his remarks at the May 4 ceremony in Boston, Pence described that winter day as starting out "tragic" but ending as a "triumph for freedom."
Pence, the former Indiana governor, who served as President Donald Trump's first vice president, publicly split with Trump after refusing to block the certification of the 2020 election, which former President Joe Biden won.
After leaving Washington, D.C., Pence launched and ended his own campaign for president in 2023 and has not hesitated to criticize the policies of the current Trump administration.
The John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award has been given out annually since 1989 to "public servants for making a courageous decision of conscience without regard for the personal or professional consequences." Past winners include former U.S. Sen. John McCain and former President Barack Obama.
Here is what Pence said at the 2025 Profile in Courage Award ceremony on May 4.
On his actions on Jan. 6, 2021
Pence said he felt "profoundly unworthy" to be associated with the award for his actions on Jan. 6, 2021.
"When I think of that fateful day four years ago, the only heroes I saw were wearing uniforms," he said.
Pence told the room at the ceremony that he "will always believe" he did his duty that day "to support the peaceful transfer of power under the constitution."
"January 6 was a tragic day," Pence said. "But it became a triumph of freedom, and history will record that our institutions held when, after law enforcement secured the Capitol, leaders in both chambers, in both political parties reconvened the very same day and finished democracy's work under the Constitution."
On the impact of his family and staff
Pence during his remarks thanked members of his family and staff who stood behind him during his career and on Jan. 6, 2021. He highlighted his wife, former Second Lady Karen Pence, and his children and their spouses.
He also pointed out "three men who stood by me through that fateful day," his brother and former U.S. Rep. Greg Pence, his former chief of staff Marc Short and his former general counsel Greg Jacob.
"If history remembers any of our service, I pray history will remember your indispensable counsel and courage during those fateful days in the life of our nation," Pence said.
On David Letterman's presence at the award ceremony
Pence joked early in his speech that he and Karen Pence felt some anxiety about the award ceremony, but knowing fellow Hoosier and comedian David Letterman was in the audience helped ease any concerns.
"Karen and I thought we might just be a category of two," Pence said. "But then we heard that David Letterman would be here and so there'd be three Hoosiers in the room."
On "words of encouragement" since January 6, 2021
Pence thanked both Hoosiers and Americans for "the honor to serve you."
"The words of encouragement over the last four years in airports and diners, stopping me on the street, people speaking a word of gratitude from every political background and I've heard over and over again, including through this special evening," Pence said. "Thank you all."
Contact IndyStar state government and politics reporter Brittany Carloni at brittany.carloni@indystar.com. Follow her on Twitter/X @CarloniBrittany.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
UPI
an hour ago
- UPI
South Korea's ruling party delays push to pass controversial bills
The ruling Democratic Party on Tuesday delayed a planned plenary session to pass several contentious bills, including one that would halt criminal trials faced by recently elected President Lee Jae-myung. File Photo by Thomas Maresca/UPI | License Photo SEOUL, June 10 (UPI) -- South Korea's ruling Democratic Party on Tuesday withdrew a plan to pass several controversial bills this week, including one aimed at halting criminal trials for an elected president, as partisan clashes heat up in the early days of the new administration of President Lee Jae-myung. Democratic Party spokesman Noh Jong-myeon met with reporters at the National Assembly and said that a plenary session that had been planned for Thursday would be shelved until new floor leadership is formed. "The various bills you were curious about will not be processed this week," Noh said. "Once the new floor leadership is formed, the bills will be processed quickly, and the subsequent situations will be entirely up to the new floor leadership and the lawmakers to decide," he said. The party is scheduled to elect its new floor leader on Friday. Among the legislation that the Democratic Party was planning to pass were a slate of bills that would alter the structure of public broadcasters and a contentious bill aimed at revising the Criminal Procedure Act to halt criminal trials for an elected president. The opposition People Power Party has strongly criticized the bill, claiming it was specifically introduced to favor President Lee Jae-myung. Lee is facing five criminal trials on a range of charges, but legal questions around immunity have swirled since he took office last week. He won the June 3 snap election after impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol was removed from office over his botched imposition of martial law. PPP floor leader Rep. Kweon Seong-dong said during a party meeting on Tuesday that the bill's passage threatens to "destroy the judicial system by creating a law for only one person." Lee had been scheduled to face a retrial on June 18 over election law violation charges. On Monday, however, the Seoul High Court announced that it was postponing the retrial indefinitely, citing Article 84 of the Constitution, which exempts a sitting president from criminal prosecution except in the case of insurrection or treason. Lee has denied the charges as politically motivated, and Kweon on Tuesday called for the president to proceed with the retrial. "If all the indictments are nothing more than fabrications and he is not guilty, as he stated during the election process, then proudly declare that you will accept the trial," Kweon said. Lee's cabinet on Tuesday, meanwhile, approved bills to appoint special counsels to probe the martial law bid by former President Yoon and corruption allegations against his wife Kim Keon Hee. Another investigation will focus on alleged interference by the presidential office and the Ministry of National Defense in the 2023 drowning death of Marine Chae Su-geun during a flood rescue mission.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Editorial: Misusing the National Guard — Trump's LA interference with local policing
Always looking to provoke a crisis, Donald Trump has federalized 2,000 soldiers of the California National Guard against the wishes of the state's governor to put down a rebellion in Los Angeles that doesn't exist. And Trump is acting counter to federal law in doing so, which is no surprise for him. After demonstrators gathered in L.A. to protest ICE raids, some idiots in the crowd threw rocks at the immigration law enforcement officers. That's a crime and is not free speech. But the president used the sporadic violence, which was quickly quelled, to overstep his legal authority. On Saturday, he issued a directive claiming: 'To the extent that protests or acts of violence directly inhibit the execution of the laws, they constitute a form of rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States.' Then, latching on to his own word 'rebellion,' he invoked a federal statute, 10 U.S. Code § 12406, covering the National Guard. The law is brief. It says that 'Whenever 1) the United States is invaded or is in danger of invasion by a foreign nation; 2) there is a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States; or 3) the President is unable with the regular forces to execute the laws of the United States; the President may call into Federal service members and units of the National Guard of any State in such numbers as he considers necessary to repel the invasion, suppress the rebellion, or execute those laws.' There's no invasion, there's no rebellion and ICE is able to carry out its functions. And there is no lawlessness in the streets of L.A. that can't be contained by the local L.A. County sheriff's department, which has almost 10,000 sworn and armed deputies and the LAPD, which has almost 9,000 sworn and armed cops. If those law enforcement professionals need help, California Gov. Gavin Newsom could activate the National Guard. But Newsom didn't call up the Guard for backup because the soldiers weren't needed. That Trump went around Newsom, who he 'cleverly' calls 'Newscum,' is something that hasn't been done in 60 years, when Lyndon Johnson federalized the Alabama National Guard in 1965 because segregationist Gov. George Wallace wouldn't protect civil rights demonstrators. There, Wallace was trying to defy the federal courts and the federal government. This is nothing like that. Trump says 'It's about law and order,' but he's the one who is going against the law and against regular order. And he's also talking about bringing in active duty Marines from nearby Camp Pendleton. That is also against the law, 18 U.S. Code § 1385. This statue is just a single sentence: 'Whoever, except in cases and under circumstances expressly authorized by the Constitution or Act of Congress, willfully uses any part of the Army, the Navy, the Marine Corps, the Air Force, or the Space Force as a posse comitatus or otherwise to execute the laws shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both.' 'Posse comitatus,' or 'posse' for short, are non-law enforcement persons acting as such. The military cannot be so used on the word of even the president. Trump should relent and demobilize the Guardsmen he wrongly brought into L.A. and let local and state officials secure the streets. _____
3 hours ago
The ACLU demands the US release and return a Dominican woman living legally in Puerto Rico
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- In late May, a 47-year-old woman from the Dominican Republic was detained by police in Puerto Rico after she entered a municipal building seeking a permit to sell ice cream on the beach to support herself. Upon being turned over to federal agents, the Dominican woman presented her passport, driver's license and work permits that proved she was living in the U.S. territory legally, her attorney Ángel Robles and the American Civil Liberties Union of Puerto Rico, said Monday. Despite the documents presented, authorities recently transferred her to Texas as part of a federal crackdown on migrants living illegally in U.S. jurisdictions. The woman, whose first name is Aracelis, has not been fully identified because she is a victim of domestic violence. Aracelis is among hundreds of people who have been detained in Puerto Rico since large-scale arrests began in late January, surprising many in the U.S. territory that has long welcomed migrants. Robles and the ACLU demanded Aracelis' release and return to Puerto Rico. 'It's outrageous,' Robles said in a phone interview. 'No charges have been filed against her, and she is not in the system.' Because her name does not appear in a federal database, Robles' request for a bond hearing was denied. 'This case is one of unspeakable abuse,' said Annette Martínez Orabona, the ACLU director in Puerto Rico. The case has fueled already simmering anger against the administration of Puerto Rico Gov. Jenniffer González Colón and local authorities who have been working with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to arrest those believed to be living illegally in the U.S. territory. In a letter sent Monday to the governor and the island's justice secretary, the ACLU accused Puerto Rico's government of violating the Constitution and local laws by providing ICE and U.S. Homeland Security with confidential information on nearly 6,000 immigrants. It also accused ICE of using that data to go on a 'fishing expedition' that it called 'arbitrary and abusive.' A spokesman for Homeland Security Investigations did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In Puerto Rico, undocumented immigrants are allowed to open bank accounts and obtain a special driver's license. The ACLU in Puerto Rico also accused González Colón's administration of not providing protocols to local government agencies for how to deal with such requests from the federal government. The ACLU requested, among other things, that Puerto Rico's government issue an executive order barring public agencies from collaborating with ICE subpoenas not accompanied by a court order. A spokeswoman for the governor did not immediately return a message for comment.
