WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Mike Pence is in a familiar spot: calmly explaining Donald Trump to a nation on edge.
With the president hospitalized with coronavirus, Trump’s loyal No. 2 will be the public face of an administration and campaign facing a crisis of credibility with just weeks to go before the election.
During Wednesday’s vice presidential debate, Pence will be asked to explain the president’s health, as well as the flurry of confusing and contradictory White House accounts of his well being. He will also be expected to justify Trump’s cavalier approach toward campaigning during a pandemic.
The high-profile role for Pence is a culmination of four years in which he has been repeatedly been called on to smooth over fallout from Trump’s messy decision making and divisive policies.
