Ben Carson: (00:01)
… but a great friend of America, our Vice President, the 48th Vice President of the United States. And I’ll tell you something interesting about him in terms of how much of an influence he’s already been in what’s going on. He has cast as the President of the Senate more tie-breaking votes than the four Vice Presidents before him combined. So he is at the right place at the right time. He served in Congress from 2001 till 2003. He was the 50th Governor of Iowa. And as if that wasn’t enough, he practiced law, was a talk show host on the radio, and has served as a spectacular Vice President so far, providing tremendous leadership on foreign affairs, but also on domestic issues.
Ben Carson: (01:04)
As you know, he’s the Chairman of the Coronavirus Task Force. I’m a member of that. I can tell you, he has so rapidly picked up the scientific and medical concepts, I mean, he should have been a doctor. He is really, really good. And being able to coordinate so many things and take diverse points of view and make everybody feel like they’re important. And what’s really interesting, if you think back to March, when about a third of elderly people who were contracting the virus were dying and now 94.7% of them are surviving, so that tells you that he has been very successful on the task force. It has been very successful. He also is a man of great wisdom and perspective who I believe the good Lord has placed here for a time such as this. And this is a very troubling time. I remember when I first took office, a senior government official came to me and said, “You have to stop all this God stuff. You cannot keep talking about God.” And I just told him to take a hike. I said, “Because I’m going to talk about God. I am always going to.” That’s like saying, “Cut your heart out and continue to work.” That really doesn’t work very well. But where did all this no God stuff come from? I don’t think people really know the history of our country and how vital God was to those who started our country. Take George Washington, he was acting as a courier for one of the generals. Back and forth, across dangerous territories, being shot at. And some years later, still before he was President, he came back to the area and one of the Indian chiefs who was very elderly and close to death, had his people carry him to where Washington was.
Ben Carson: (03:37)
And he said, “I just wanted to meet you, sir, because I shot you four times and you’re still here.” And there were, in fact, four bullet holes and Washington’s coat, but no flesh wounds. He was being protected. And many people know the story of the battle of Long Island when Washington was down to his last battalion. We’d been wiped out. It was looking very grim. They were surrounded on land and on sea. And it looked like it was going to be the end of our Revolutionary War. But the meteorologic records, which are still available today, demonstrate that, that evening a very strange, dense fog fell over the area. It lasted through the night and into the next day, providing cover for Washington so that they could escape. And some people want to say that it’s a coincidence. I don’t think that that’s a coincidence.
Ben Carson: (04:44)
I think God has been involved from the beginning because our founders honored God. A lot of people who want to rewrite our history try to tell you that, “Our founders didn’t believe in God.” All you have to do is go back and look at their writings and I think you’ll be very convinced that they very much did believe in God. And then you have all of the people talking about separation of church and state. You’ll never hear that coming out of Vice President Pence’s mouth. Separation of church and state is not in the U.S. Constitution. It is not there. Nowhere. And there was a Supreme Court ruling a few decades ago where it was mentioned but only in the context that the state should not rule the church and the church should not rule the state. That’s all it meant. It didn’t mean that people who work in government cannot speak and act upon their faith.
Ben Carson: (05:49)
And when Alexis de Tocqueville came to America to study it, because Americans were doing so well, this young fledgling nation, and no one could explain it. And he said, “I’m going to go there and I’m going to study them in depth.” And in the last chapter of that two volumes that he talked about the influence of the church. The fiery pulpits, which gave the people, their courage and their moral rectitude enough to be able to defeat the most powerful military force in the world. So faith is a big part of us. It’s a big part of us as individuals too if we stop and examine our lives. I remember when I was a young attending neurosurgeon and I thought I was pretty hot stuff. And there came this young child from Georgia who was four years old. He was a child prodigy. At age two, he was already quoting Bible verses. But when he was four, he started stumbling. He started slobbering. He had double vision and he was diagnosed with malignant brainstem tumor.
Ben Carson: (07:05)
And they saw many people. Everybody gave him the same diagnosis, told them to take the boy home, keep them comfortable and let them die. And they ended up at Johns Hopkins. And I remember seeing that boy come in to the ward rolled on a stretcher and his eyes were looking in different directions, foaming at the mouth, barely moving, barely breathing. I was saying, “What am I supposed to do with him?” I looked at the CAT scan. There was this big, ugly brainstem tumor. And the parents said, “Doctor, we were directed here by God because we would find a Christian neurosurgeon who could heal our son.” And I said, “But this is a malignant brainstem tumor. There’s nothing I or anyone else can do about this.” And they said, “But doctor, the Lord sent us here to see you.” I said, “Okay, I tell you what.” I said, “Let’s do an MRI.” MRIs were new at that time. I said, “Maybe it’ll show something the CAT scan doesn’t show.”
Ben Carson: (08:16)
We did the MRI. All the neuroradiologists looked at it. They said, “It’s a malignant brainstem tumor. Nothing to do.” I came back and told them. And they said, “But doctor, the Lord.” I said, ” Okay.” I said, “Look, one in 1000 times the scans are wrong. So maybe this is some kind of inflammatory reaction. So I’ll go in and I’ll do a biopsy.” And they said, “Oh, thank you, doctor. Thank you.” And I went in and there was this big, ugly grayish red mass, and I took a frozen section biopsy, sent it off. It came back high grade glioma, a very malignant tumor. And I took out as much as I dared until I started running across vital structures. I said, “I better stop.” Closed him up, went out to talk to the parents. And I said, “Unfortunately, it looks like it is what we thought. And only God knows how long a person is supposed to be here. Maybe he’s already served his purpose and we’ll understand it better by and by,” and all the things we tell people.
Ben Carson: (09:27)
And they said, “Thank you, doctor. But the Lord is going to heal her son.” As I walked away, I was thinking, I’ve never seen people with that kind of faith fully expecting over the next few days he would deteriorate and die. But instead, his eyes started looking in the same direction. He started handling his secretions. I said, “What’s going on?” I said, “Let’s do another MRI.” And we did and there was still a big early tumor. But there was a little ribbon of tissue way up in the corner, and I said, “Is it possible that maybe this was not in the brainstem, it just crushed and displaced the brainstem. Maybe I should go back in.” And they said, “By all means.” And I went back in and the nature of that tumor was different. And as I peeled it away layer by layer under the microscope, I got to the last layer and pulled it away. And there was a brainstem glistening white, intact, smashed, and displaced. Long story short, that boy walked out of the hospital and today he’s a minister.
Ben Carson: (10:44)
Those are the kinds of things that build faith. And one of the oncologists told me after that, he said, “Ben, I’ve always been an atheist. I’m not anymore.” But the fact of the matter was really for me because I thought I was doing all this stuff. And I came to realize, as Vice President Pence fully realizes, that it is God, that he uses us as instruments if we are willing to allow him to use us. And Vice President Pence recognizes that the election that we’re facing, it’s not about Democrats or Republicans. It’s about people who believe that this country is of, for, and by the people and people who believe it’s of, for, and by the government. And people who believe in our Judeo-Christian foundation and those who think that that’s a bunch of silliness. And it is so important for people to recognize that this is about not a person or a personality, this is about concepts.
Ben Carson: (11:51)
This is about the future for our children and our grandchildren. We cannot be thrown off because we don’t like somebody or the way that they say something. That’s really taking the small view. And that’s something that our Vice President does not do. He is a man who lives by Godly principles of loving your fellow man, caring about your neighbor, developing your God given talents to the utmost so that you become valuable to the people around you, having values and principles that govern his life. And we are very, very fortunate to have with us today, the 48th Vice President of the United States, Michael Richard Pence.
Vice President Mike Pence: (12:44)
Well, hello Iowa. To Bob Vanderplatz, his wife, Darla, all of my fellow Americans, it’s great to be back in the Hawkeye State with all of the amazing men and women of The Family Leader. Give yourselves a round of applause. What a great organization. It’s great to be here today just 33 days from what I believe will be a great victory for faith and family all across Iowa and all across America. And I want to thank Dr. Ben Carson for those inspiring words and for his friendship. Abraham Lincoln said his only ambition in life was to be esteemed.
Vice President Mike Pence: (14:02)
Abraham Lincoln said his only ambition in life was to be esteemed by people he esteemed. And I have to tell you, America is blessed by the steady, principled, faith filled leadership of Dr. Ben Carson. Would you join me in thanking Ben Carson for all that he means to the life of this nation? We cherish you and Candy so much. Ben and I have gotten to know each other over the last several years, serving shoulder to shoulder and a better man I’ve never known, but Ben does know that the introduction I prefer is a little bit shorter. I’m a Christian, a conservative, and a Republican in that order. And it is wonderful to be here with The Family Leader. And I want to say, thanks also to Bob Vander Plaats and his amazing wife Darla, for all they’ve done for the cause of conservative and pro family values here in Iowa. And in more than a dozen states across the country, Bob and Darla for all you’ve done strengthening families. For all you’ve done to promote faith and leadership and revival. Can we hear it for Bob and Darla and The Family Leader team for all they’ve done? Thank you all for being a part of this vital ministry in the life of the nation. We’re so grateful.
Vice President Mike Pence: (15:28)
You know, Bob and The Family Leader, are really emblematic of a very rich tradition in the United States of America. Even a casual study of the history of this nation shows that people of faith have made the difference throughout our country’s history. From the very founding of the nation, the Robed Regiments of the American revolution, the preachers of revival in our great awakenings, the way that the pulpits of America thundered for abolition of slavery and led the Civil Rights Movement. It has been people of faith, I believe with all of my heart who have led us toward a more perfect union. And I want to congratulate and thank each and every one of you for being a part of continuing that great American tradition.
Vice President Mike Pence: (16:24)
But it’s so good to be here with so many friends, including a man, who I thought he was from Minnesota. But he is a man of faith who’s been a champion of everything that we hold dear. And he actually was kind enough to bring my sister and my niece down from Minnesota. Would you join me in thanking Mike Lindell and the whole team that’s down from My Pillow. Thanks for all you do for people of faith and the conservative cause, Mike.
Vice President Mike Pence: (16:59)
So thanks to all the friends who are here and speaking of friends, allow me to bring greetings from another friend of mine. A man who I can tell you firsthand, has fought to keep the promises that he’s made to people of faith. People dedicated to family, people who believe in freedom, every single day. The last three and a half years, I bring greetings from the 45th president of the United States of America, President Donald Trump. I don’t know if y’all had a chance to see that debate night before last. I’ll tell you what, if you ever doubted that we had a fighter in the White house, you don’t doubt it anymore. President Donald Trump took our case to the American people, and he took the fight to Joe Biden. And, case you didn’t know it. I’m headed to Salt Lake City next week to debate with his running mate. And I promise you, President Trump and I are going to keep on fighting for faith, and family, and freedom. And we’re going to fight 33 days to earn four more years in the White House.
Vice President Mike Pence: (18:08)
And we’re going to tell our story and I challenge each and every one of you to do the same. Because we’ve got an incredible story to tell about what we’ve accomplished for this country. I mean, the truth is President Trump has literally kept the promises that he’s made to the people of Iowa and all the states so well-represented here at The Family Leader, but think about it. Four years ago, we inherited a military that had been hollowed out by devastating budget cuts. An economy, struggling to break out of the slowest economic recovery since the great depression. Terrorism was on the rise around the world. And worst of all, we had this eight years of a steady assault on our most cherished values and liberties.
Vice President Mike Pence: (18:57)
And I’m here to tell you three and a half years on, from when the people of Iowa said, “Yes” to President Donald Trump, I couldn’t can be more proud to report, not just as your vice president, but as the father of a Marine and the proud father-in-law of a United States Navy pilot, we rebuilt our military. We restored the arsenal of democracy. President Donald Trump has signed the largest increases in our National Defense since the days of Ronald Reagan. And we’re finally giving our soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, and space force, the resources and the support that they need to defend this land of freedom.
Vice President Mike Pence: (19:46)
And with that renewed American strength, under the president it’s leadership, our armed forces have taken the fight to radical Islamic terrorists on our terms, on their soil. Where Joe sent pallets of cash to the mullahs in Iran, president Donald Trump got us out of the Iranian nuclear deal. And I was there, when president Donald Trump, without hesitation gave the order to take out the world’s most dangerous terrorists and Qasem Soleimani is gone.
Vice President Mike Pence: (20:17)
The President Donald Trump has put the security of America first. And in our first three years, our president also took decisive action to revive the American economy. Where Joe Biden has plans to raise taxes across the board. President Donald Trump has cut taxes for small businesses and large, cut taxes for working families. We rolled back in those first three years, more federal red tape already than any president in American history. We unleashed American energy. We fought for free and fair trade. And in just three short years, businesses, large and small, created more than 7 million good paying jobs, including nearly 12,000 jobs right here in Iowa.
Vice President Mike Pence: (21:09)
So it’s been about security. It’s been about prosperity, in these first three years. And every step of the way your president, and our administration have stood for the rule of law and the principles we cherish. So I stand before you today, we’ve seen confirmed more than 230 conservative judges to our federal courts at every level. And I can tell you, they are all men and women who will uphold the God-given liberties enshrined in our constitution. Like the freedom of speech, the freedom of religion, and the second amendment right to keep and bear arms
Vice President Mike Pence: (21:49)
Last week, we paused as a nation to honor the life of service of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. But after the memorials were over, President Donald Trump did his duty. The Constitution provides that the president shall nominate judges to the Supreme Court in the event of a vacancy. And president Donald Trump did just that when he nominated a remarkable, principled, conservative woman of amazing intellect and a beautiful family who will uphold the constitution of the United States to our Supreme Court. He nominated Judge Amy Coney Barrett. Two days ago, I had the privilege of escorting Judge Barrett to the United States Senate. And she’s on Capitol Hill all this week. Meeting with members of the Senate. We challenged Democrats in the Senate to provide Judge Barrett with a respectful and dignified hearing, and to give America the kind of confirmation process American people deserve. But we have reason to be concerned. You all remember her last confirmation hearing just a few short years ago, when she was nominated to the court of appeals. During Judge Barrett’s confirmation hearing the Democrat chairman of the judiciary committee, criticized her Catholic faith. Saying that “The dogma lives loudly within you.” And Hollywood elites have already begun to criticize her and her family for their commitment to their faith. Well, I got news for the Democrats and the Hollywood elites that dogma lives loudly in me, that dogma lives loudly in hundreds of millions of Americans. And every American who cherishes faith has the right to live and work and worship according to the dictates of our faith and conscience enshrined in the Constitution of the United States. The American people cherish the freedom of religion of every American and every faith. And these attacks on Judge Barrett’s faith must stop.
Vice President Mike Pence: (24:18)
The Senate has a job to do, to discharge their duty, to advise and consent. And we’ll work with any willing member of the Senate to do just that. But I tell you, we’re going to fill that seat. And Judge Amy Coney Barrett is going to be Justice Amy Coney Barrett on the Supreme Court of the United States. So president Trump has stood for the rule of law. He kept his word to the people of Iowa and all the great states represented here and all of our country. He appointed those principled conservatives to our courts at every level, all the way through Judges Barrett’s nomination. And every single day of this administration, President Donald Trump and I have stood without apology for the men and women who serve on the thin blue line of law enforcement.
Vice President Mike Pence: (25:18)
I think people in The Family Leader know, men and women who serve in law enforcement are some of the best people in it in this country. President Trump and I, like all of you, will always support and defend the Constitutional right of every American to engage in peaceful protest. But rioting and looting is not peaceful protest. Burning businesses is not free speech. Violence against innocent civilians or property, or law enforcement, will not be tolerated. And those who do these things will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. For months, all Joe Biden talked about was peaceful protests. Remember that? An entire summer. As Americans living in our major cities, literally watched businesses in their communities burn. Mike, I was just in Minneapolis, just a few short days ago. And I traveled into the heart of the city that had been beset by the rioting, and the looting, and the violence that followed the killing of George Floyd. I spent some time with Flora Westborough, an extraordinary African-American woman. She started a Flora’s Salon, 35 years ago, and yet she watched in horror just days after that terrible event, as looters moved closer and closer and closer, and burned her and her son’s business to the ground. But I told Flora, we are with you, the American people are with you. And we’re going to rebuild Flora’s Salon and Minneapolis.
Vice President Mike Pence: (27:07)
And so we are. The truth is, Joe Biden would actually double down on the policies that have led to violence in America’s cities. When you withdraw support for those who serve and protect, I believe that you embolden those who threaten our families, and our peace in the streets. Joe Biden actually says that America is in his words, systemically racist. And that law enforcement has, and I quote, “An implicit bias against minorities.” When Joe Biden was asked if he’d support cutting funding for law enforcement, he replied. “Yes, absolutely.”
Vice President Mike Pence: (27:50)
And his running mate said again, earlier this week, that it was time to quote, “Re-imagine law enforcement.” Well, let me make you a promise, under President Donald Trump-
Vice President Mike Pence: (28:03)
Well, let me make you a promise, under President Donald Trump we’re not going to re-imagine anything, we’re going to back the blue, and we’re not going to defund the police, not now, not ever. President Trump and I know you don’t have to make a choice between supporting law enforcement and supporting our African-American neighbors or other minorities in our communities, we have done both and we’ll continue to do both with four more years in the White House. Under this president, we’ve provided resources to hire 4,000 more police officers, this summer in the wake of violence in our cities we launched Operation Legend and we’ve already seen to the arrest of more than 2,500 violent offenders in our major cities. The program itself was named after a four year old boy who was shot and killed in gang violence while he slept in the pillow fort that he and his dad constructed.
Vice President Mike Pence: (28:58)
So, we’ve supported law enforcement, but I couldn’t be more proud to be vice president to a president whose policies saw in our first three years the lowest unemployment ever recorded for African-Americans, the highest investment in historically Black colleges and universities, 8,000 opportunity zones in every major city attracting investment and jobs, and a president who has fought to let parents in our inner cities choose where their children go to school regardless of their income or area code. So we’re going to continue to support law enforcement, we’re going to continue to support our African-American families with better opportunities, better education, and more public safety. And under President Donald Trump, we’re going to have law and order in every city, in every state in this nation, for every American of every race, and creed, and color, so help us, God. So we’ve made incredible progress.
Vice President Mike Pence: (30:05)
But as supporters and friends of The Family Leader know, in President Donald Trump you’ve had a leader whose kept his promises to people of faith like no other in my lifetime. It’s remarkable to think that four previous presidents in both political parties had promised the American people and our most cherished ally to take action, but it was President Donald Trump who kept that promise when he moved the American Embassy to Jerusalem, the capital of the State of Israel. And I was alongside the president when the phone started to ring and he was preparing to keep that promise, Bob, and to say that virtually every leader in the world and every foreign policy elite in Washington, DC was against, would be an understatement. I mean, one called after another, didn’t they, Ben? They said, “Don’t do it.” They said that it would make peace less possible, but President Donald Trump believed that it would make peace more possible.
Vice President Mike Pence: (31:15)
The man who wrote The Art of the Deal had the view that if you want to negotiate peace, the first thing you do is you take off the table what’s not negotiable, and Jerusalem is the eternal capital of the Jewish State of Israel. And confirming the president since, I don’t know if you all saw just a couple short weeks ago, for the first time in 26 years two Arab nations formally recognized the Jewish State of Israel and we believe there are more on the way. Beyond the strong stand and the keeping of promises, I will tell you, I couldn’t be more proud to serve as vice president to a president who stands without apology for the sanctity of human life. President Donald Trump is the most pro-life president in American history, it’s true. On just our fourth day in office, the president re-instated what’s known as the Mexico City policy, ending taxpayer funding of foreign programs that provide or promote abortion around the world.
Vice President Mike Pence: (32:51)
And it was this president who earlier this year became the first president since Roe v. Wade to go to the National Mall and address the March for Life in person, we stand with those who stand for life. But you deserve to know that Joe Biden and the radical left support taxpayer funding of abortion all the way up to the moment of birth, they’re calling for historic increases in funding for Planned Parenthood of America. And after spending an entire career since Roe vs. Wade, supporting what came to be known as the Hyde Amendment, a great piece of legislation by the late Henry Hyde that prevented taxpayer dollars from being used to pay for abortions in America, last year Joe Biden reversed his historic position in support of the Hyde Amendment and now supports taxpayer funding of abortion. I must tell you, and Ben mentioned how many tie-breaking votes I’ve cast as vice president, but I got to tell you, the one I’m proudest of was the day I was able to cast the tie-breaking vote in the United States Senate to allow states to defund planned parenthood, and President Donald Trump signed it into law. So, we’ve stood for life. And from day one, this president has also stood strong for what’s come to be known as our first freedom, that is religious freedom enshrined in our constitution. Early on in our administration, the president took steps to free up the pulpits of America. We believe that the freedom of speech should not end at the front doors of our churches, and synagogues, and houses of worship, and President Donald Trump stopped enforcement of the Johnson Amendment and restored the freedom of speech, the leaders of faith. We’ve also taken steps to respect the conscience rights of doctors, and nurses, and teachers, and religious charities all across America. And it was this president and this administration that ended the assault on the Little Sisters of the Poor, and the Supreme Court made it permanent just weeks ago. It’s remarkable to think that a group of nuns who had taken a lifetime vow of poverty to support and help the underserved community, were hauled into court when Joe Biden was vice president for the sole purpose of requiring them to compromise their faith to live under the strictures of Obamacare.
Vice President Mike Pence: (36:05)
The Supreme Court actually voted by seven to two to make permanent the efforts to conform the Little Sisters of the Poor to Obamacare, but Joe Biden has already announced that if elected president he’ll reimpose the Obamacare mandates on the Little Sisters of the Poor and on religious institutions, and his own running mate actually attacked one of our judicial nominees for being a member of the Catholic Knights of Columbus. So let me just say, these attacks on the freedom of religion must stop in America, and with four more years we will stand for the religious freedom of every American of every faith. So we accomplished so much in our first three years, we rebuilt our military, revived our economy, stood for life, and our liberties, and law and order, and the faith and freedom of every American. In three short years, as I like to say, we made America great again, we did. But then, as Ben shared, and he’s a valued member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, then the coronavirus struck from China. But I want you all to know that before the very first documented case of community transmission within the United States, our president did what no American president had ever done before. Before the month of January was out, he suspended all travel from China, the second largest economy in the world. Now, Joe Biden called it hysterical, he called it xenophobic. But I can tell you as the head of the task force, that action alone saved untold American lives and it bought us invaluable time to stand up the largest national mobilization since World War II. We’ve reinvented testing, more than 100 million tests performed today, 150 million new point of care tests that are being distributed to states all across the country as we speak. We worked with manufacturing here in Iowa and all across the country to see to the production and the distribution of literally billions of medical supplies for our doctors, and nurses, and healthcare workers.
Vice President Mike Pence: (38:39)
Our FDA worked to make new medicines available like remdesivir and convalescent plasma. And I’m proud to report to you that with American innovation, our dedicated researchers, we believe, are just literally weeks away from the first coronavirus vaccine for the American people, and we’ll have tens of millions of doses available the moment that it’s approved. We’ve demonstrated as a nation that we can slow the spread, we’re going to continue to protect the vulnerable, continue to save lives, and we’re opening up America again. Thanks to the strong foundation poured by our president, supported by all of you, that foundation of less taxes, less regulation, more American energy, after losing 22 million jobs at the height of this pandemic, we’ve already seen 10.6 million Americans go back to work including 97,000 people right here in Iowa.
Vice President Mike Pence: (39:49)
And we’re not just opening up America, we’re opening up American schools. And I’m proud to report to you that my wife of 35 years is already back in the classroom at the Christian School, outside Washington, DC, where she teaches every day. We’ve been there for our doctors, our nurses, our healthcare workers, and we’re going to make sure our teachers and administrators have everything they need to safely reopen as we strive for that day with a vaccine that we put the coronavirus in the past. It’s remarkable to think what we’ve been through over the course of this year, we’ve gone through a time of testing, but I came here today, as all of you know at The Family Leader, because we’re coming to a time for choosing. The choice in this election has never been clear, the stakes have never been higher. I believe that when you look at their agenda, it’s clear that Joe Biden would be nothing more than a Trojan horse for the radical left.
Vice President Mike Pence: (40:49)
I mean, Joe Biden has said that democracy is on the ballot, and certainly our economic recovery is on the ballot, law and order are on the ballot, but I also believe that there are things much more foundational and fundamental that are on the ballot as well. I think between now and November 3rd, it’s not going to be so much whether we end up more Republican or more Democrat, more liberal or more conservative, more red or more blue, I think the choice we face in this nation, in this year, is whether America remains America. It’s whether we are going to chart a course for our children and grandchildren and a future that’s based on the timeless ideals enshrined in our constitution, our belief in free enterprise and free market and the American dream, or whether we’re going to take that hard left turn, the well-worn path, the government control, and a managed economy, the path to socialism. That’s why I believe for the sake of our freedom…
Vice President Mike Pence: (42:01)
That’s why I believe for the sake of our freedom, for the sake of all the ideals that have made this nation truly great in the past. We need to decide right here and right now, that Joe Biden will never be president of the United States of America, that we’re going to reelect President Donald Trump for four more years. So, I thank you for hearing me out. I thank you for your faith, for your enthusiasm and for all the family leader’s done to stand with those who stand with our most cherished values, each and every day. It truly is an honor to be with you here. I’d encourage you in the days ahead, to keep telling your neighbors and friends, at work and at worship, that all that we’ve accomplished as a nation, and all that’s at stake in the days ahead. And be confident as you go.
Vice President Mike Pence: (43:03)
In all my travels across the country, over the last four years, to big cities and small towns, I’m convinced of two things. That America is a freedom loving nation, and America is a nation of faith. Everywhere I go, people speak to me about their faith, with a word of encouragement. Sweetest words I ever hear, is when people will say as they did over at Carter Lake earlier today. Reach out maybe across a rope line and just say, “I’m praying for you.” And I want you all to know, we feel those prayers every day. I think the American people know that the foundation of America is freedom, but the foundation of freedom is faith. The truth is, faith is at the very heart of who we are as Americans. And I believe the foundation of this country is strengthened each and every day, by the stand that each and every one of you take.
Vice President Mike Pence: (44:17)
President Lincoln reminded us, “It is the duty of nations as well as of men, to recognize the sublime truth announced in the Holy scriptures and proven by all histories, that those nations are only blessed whose God is the Lord.” And so as I leave here today, in these challenging times, and urge you to hold fast to freedom, let’s also hold fast to faith, and let’s remember to pray. The Bible tells us, “That the prayer of the upright pleases him. That prayer reaches heaven, his Holy dwelling place.” And then in times of great challenge in our life or in the life of the nation, we’re not to be anxious about anything, but in everything, in every form of prayer and petition with Thanksgiving, we’re to present our request to God, and know that the peace of God that passes all understanding will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Vice President Mike Pence: (45:23)
As Ben Carson said, “We’re passing through difficult days as a nation. Too much division in our country today. An election of such a consequence, may well be one of the most important elections in the life of this nation.” But I believe more than ever, that people of faith should pray. And coming here today, I want to encourage you, practice that prayer in a renewed way. As we think of the challenges and the times in which we live, the more than 200,000 of our countrymen that have been lost. We think of the grief of those families who have always been on our hearts. Those that are struggling with disease today, as we think of the economic hardship that people still face, in the midst of the recovery that’s underway. We think of the violence besetting families in our major cities. Let’s claim that ancient promise, that if His people, who are called by His name, will humble themselves and pray in turn, he’ll do like he’s always done in the long and storied history of this country. He’ll hear from heaven and he’ll heal this land.
Vice President Mike Pence: (46:38)
So, thank you for the warm welcome. I was humbled by what Bob Vanderplatz said, that I’m coming to you today, but you said, “I come from you.” And I hope you can hear my heart today. And while I’m at it, standing here in Iowa, let me say, it is the greatest honor of my life to serve as your vice-president. And on behalf of my family, I want to thank you for the great privilege of serving in this role for yours. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you very much.
Vice President Mike Pence: (47:46)
My pastor told me one time that, “Everybody is under-encouraged.” And I can tell you that I leave here today encouraged. Know that you’ve encouraged your vice-president. I know you’ve encouraged Ben and Candy, and all those in our delegation today and we thank you. And I leave here today, believing more than ever that God is at work.
Vice President Mike Pence: (48:08)
As I close, let me just share a story. It was a few months ago, I was reminded that even when it doesn’t seem that way, God is still working. See, I got a letter, from a pastor who leads a small church, just outside Jacksonville, Florida. He wrote to me of a time many years ago, that he and his wife were attending Asbury Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky, it’s back in the 1970s. It was a place where they held in the spring of every year, a Christian music festival. Where they would have music, and then they would have preachers who would present the Gospel and invite young people from all across the region.
Vice President Mike Pence: (48:54)
But he wrote to me that in 1977, he had decided at the seminary, they had collectively decided to end the Christian music festival, it was known as Ichthus. But he and his new bride, felt a burden to take on the task. Even though he wrote, and I quote, “That several friends told us that it would be very hard on our new marriage and we shouldn’t do it.” But he said, “We answered the call. They gathered a few other seminarians, as he told me, and they worked a whole year long to arrange the event in the spring of 1978. And then he told me, that the night came, the culminating evening on Saturday night, when everything was to come together, and the main preaching was done. And he and his new bride were walking through the camp area, and it was raining and they were deeply disappointed. They thought it had all been for naught.
Vice President Mike Pence: (49:58)
And then, he wrote these words in a letter, I quote, “And that’s because on that night, I didn’t know that a future vice-president of the United States of America would be giving his life to Jesus Christ.” He continued, “I cannot write this without tears. And I still can’t read it without tears. Because I remember that night, sitting on a hillside, it was raining and it was like I heard the words for the first time. That God so loved the world. That he sent his only begotten son, that whoever might believe in him might not perish, but have eternal life.
Vice President Mike Pence: (50:46)
And that 19-year-old young man stood up and walked down that night, not out of a sense of intellectual agreement, but because my heart was broken with gratitude, for what had been done for me on the cross. I wrote a letter to that pastor, which I couldn’t write without tears. Not long after that, we actually met him and his wife and laughed together and prayed together. But I told him, “Now I know who else to thank for that night so many years ago, it changed my life.” The lesson in that letter to me though, was even when things don’t seem like they’re going the way we expect, they’re going the way he expected. The truth is, in the most challenging times in our nation, we can still claim a promise that we’ve had over the mantle of our home for now nearly 20 years.
Vice President Mike Pence: (51:57)
I traveled to the little house that we lived in while we served in the Congress. It traveled to the governor’s residence in Indiana. And now, it’s over the mantle, in the home of the vice-presidency. It reads, “For I know the plans I have for you. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you a hope and a future.” I believe with all my heart, that if we will hold fast to him, we have a hold fast to his promises, if we will hold up the example, the strength that comes through faith in Jesus Christ, that it will once again, be people of faith that see our way through these challenging times. That a hope and a future awaits beyond anything we could ask or imagine. And the best days for Iowa and America by God’s grace, are yet to come. Thank you very much. Thank you for the honor of being with you today. For all the work of the family leader and God bless America.