Former Vice President Mike Pence addressed students and faculty at Colorado Christian University Friday as part of the college President’s Speaker Series.
“I’m a Christian, a conservative, and a Republican. In that order,” Pence said when he took the stage. The phrase has become his traditional introduction.
He told campus members it was a difficult time to be a conservative.
“What does it mean to be a conservative?” Pence asked students. “Well, for me, a conservative is very by definition an individual who has a calling to conserve what is best about this nation... And for me, the foundations of our greatness will always be faith and freedom.”
Pence focused on students’ futures and faith as well as abortion and gay marriage.
“I truly do believe that the marriage was ordained by God. It's the glue of the American family. It's the wellspring of our civilization,” Pence said. “And I know it's fallen out of favor to defend traditional marriage. But when we ask the question of what is a conservative, I assure you whether it's in favor or not, standing up for traditional marriage between one man and one woman must be the calling of our time.”
Earlier Friday, Pence’s conservative advocacy group, Advancing American Freedom (AAF), made headlines by opposing Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s nomination to serve as the Secretary of Health and Human Services, due to his pro-abortion stance.
“I believe this nomination of RFK Jr. to serve as Secretary of HHS is an abrupt departure from the pro-life record of our administration and should be deeply concerning to millions of Pro-Life Americans who have supported the Republican Party and our nominees for decades,” AAF said in a statement posted on X.
Kennedy was nominated by Pence’s former running mate and current President-elect Donald Trump. Pence has been estranged from Trump since the Jan. 6 insurrection when he refused to overturn the results of the 2020 election, despite orders from then-President Trump.
The address was coined as a “lecture-style” conversation by CCU and included break-out sessions earlier with campus members, as well as other guest speakers. Pence also took questions after his speech.
Pence also spoke briefly earlier Friday afternoon, where he mainly touched on leadership and liberty.
“I want to commend each and every one of you… members of the board, the faculty, the Chancellor, all of you that make Colorado Christian University such an extraordinary place,” Pence said. “Thank you for raising up leaders, and god bless you all.”
And earlier in the day, Karen Pence, a longtime educator and water color artist was joined by singer-songwriter Steven Curtis Chapman and his wife, Mary Beth Chapman, the chairman of Show Hope, a national nonprofit organization in adoption advocacy and orphan care, for a discussion panel.
