Former Vice President Mike Pence revealed his brief conversation with President-elect Trump, which was captured on camera during former President Carter’s state funeral.
The pair have not been seen together publicly since leaving the White House in disagreement over the 2020 election results. At the service at the National Cathedral, Pence stood to shake Trump’s hand, and they appeared to exchange pleasantries.
Former second lady Karen Pence, who was sitting next to her husband, did not stand up or acknowledge Trump.
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In an interview with Christianity Today, Pence said he “welcomed” the opportunity to speak with Trump.
“He greeted me as he came down the aisle. I stood up and extended my hand. He shook my hand. I said, ‘Congratulations, Mr. President‘, and he said, ‘Thanks, Mike,'” Pence said.
Former Vice President Al Gore, left, looks on as former Vice President Mike Pence, center, shakes hands with President-elect Trump before a state funeral service for former President Carter at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, DC, January 9, 2025. (Mandel Ngan/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
Pence also recalled one of his last conversations with Trump in 2021, when he told Trump he would continue to pray for him. Trump responded: “Don’t bother,” the outlet reported.
“I said, ‘You know, there’s probably two things we’ll never agree on. … We will probably never agree on what my duty was under the Constitution January 6.’ And then I said, ‘And I’ll never stop praying for you,'” Pence told Christianity Today. “And he said, ‘That’s right, Mike, never change.'”
He said he kept his word.
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Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks for former President Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, at a campaign event on November 1, 2024 in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
While the two appeared to remain cordial in Carter’s service, Pence told the outlet that’s not on his mind Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is the right person to lead Health and Human Services and raised concerns about former U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence.
Fox News Digital reached out to Trump and Advancing American Freedom, a public policy advocacy organization founded by Pence, for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
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Fox News Digital’s Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this article.
