Boston, Massachusetts – Former Vice President Mike Pence was respected Sunday night for his actions on January 6, 2021 to resist then-boss President Donald Trump.
Pence received a John F. Kennedy award for refusing to respect Trump's abandonment of the 2020 presidential election results, but instead oversees the Congressional certification of former president Joe Biden's election college victory.
“Pence's lifelong career and family's career are to enforce his constitutional responsibility. His actions retain the fundamental democratic principles of free and fair elections, and we are proud to honor him,” said Caroline Kennedy, a former ambassador of the late President Kennedy.
Pence emphasized when accepting the annual award that this is “a difference that I will cherish in my life.”
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Former Vice President Mike Pence won the John Kennedy Award for Courage at a ceremony held at the Kennedy Library on Sunday, May 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
The former vice president pointed out that his actions on January 6 were appreciating his actions: “I always believe in God’s grace, and that day I fulfilled my duties.”
Minutes after the awards ceremony, Pence said: “In all my trips across the country over the past four years, I’ve been very humbled by how many Americans I have come, just to encourage and support us, and that makes me believe that the American people know what differences we might have, the differences we might have, the constitution we have is in our hands.”
Penn, 65, is Indiana governor and Trump appointed him as his campaign partner in 2016. For four years, Pence served as Trump's loyal vice president during the first term of the White House.
But everything changed on January 6, 2021, as right-wing extremists (including some chanting “Hang Mike Pence”) attacked the U.S. Capitol, aiming to subvert the Congressional certification, and was in charge of Pence, as part of his constitutional post as vice president, was Biden's Election Academy victory.
The attack on the Capitol occurred as Trump spoke among a large group of supporters near the White House about the unconfirmed claim that the 2020 election was “manipulated” due to “vote fraud.”
Pence has long described the violent attack on the Capitol as “tragic” and humiliated “the millions of people who support our cause across the country.” He stressed that he did the “right thing” and performed “responsibilities under the Constitution.” He also noted that he and Trump may never “see the eyes of the day.”
In this January 6, 2021 photo, protesters loyal to President Donald Trump attack the Capitol in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Trump argued in a social media post when his family and top aides were roamed by Secret Service agents in a hurry by Secret Service agents: “Mike Pence has no courage to do the steps to protect our country and our constitution, giving states the opportunity to prove a set of corrected facts rather than fraudulent or former proofers who have been asked about these facts before.
Pence rejected the Secret Service’s suggestion to flee the Capitol, and after the thugs eventually evacuated from the Capitol, he resumed his constitutional role in overseeing the Congressional certification ceremony.
The former vice president repeatedly refuted Trump's claim that he could have overturned the presidential election results. Still, hardcore Trump loyalists have never forgiven pennies they consider traitors for refusing the president's repeated efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.
Former Vice President Mike Pence officially announced his presidential campaign in Ankeny, Iowa on June 7, 2023. (Paul Steinhauser/Fox News)
Pence launched his own presidential campaign in June 2023, joining Trump’s numerous challengers for the 2024 Republican nomination, becoming the first campaign companion to run against their former boss in more than 80 years.
Pence runs on a traditional conservative platform, building the Republican future with the rise of what he calls “populism” in the party.
In the Republican slim anti-Trump base, Pence was praised for his courage in the Capitol attack, and he was often thanked at City Hall during his campaign for Trump.
Pence often ran in the crucial early voting countries in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, his White House bid never took off. He suspended his campaign after four and a half months after he announced his candidacy.
Former Vice President Mike Pence received the John F. Kenney’s Courage Award on May 4, 2025 at the Kennedy International Airport Library in Boston, Massachusetts. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
The profile of the Courage Award is named after the book published by the late John F. Kennedy in 1957.
Despite potential political or personal consequences, the award is intended to recognize public officials who take a principled stand. Among the previous recipients were former Presidents Barack Obama, George HW Bush and Gerald Ford.
Jack Schlossberg, grandson of Kennedy International Airport, introduced the former vice president at the awards ceremony, saying Pence “saves America.”
Former Vice President Mike Pence is second right, his wife Karen Pence stands with his wife Karen Pence as Jack Schlossberg and his mother Caroline Kennedy won the John F. Kennedy Award for Courage at a ceremony held at the Kennedy International Airport Library. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
Caroline Kennedy pointed out her “political disagreement” with Pence in honor of the former vice president, but emphasized that “political courage is not outdated in the United States.”
Pence, a well-known financial and social conservative, joked about speaking in front of a Democrat-led audience, saying he was “a minority in this room.”
After revoking his bid to the White House, Pence refused to endorse Trump even after receiving the Republican nomination last spring, even though he did congratulate his former running partner after his victory in November.
Trump and Pence were seen shaking hands at the funeral of former President Jimmy Carter in early January – they made their first public appearance in nearly four years.
Trump, Pence shakes hands at Carter's funeral at his first public meeting since leaving the office
Pence has become a rare voice Trump so far as Trump has ever been, during the president’s second tour in the White House.
Former Vice President Al Gore (L) watched former Vice President Mike Pence (C) fight against then-President-elect Donald Trump to hold a state funeral at former President Jimmy Carter at the National Cathedral of Washington, Washington, D.C. on January 9, 2025.
(Getty Image)
Pence criticized Trump's enormous tariffs and accidental implementation of the largest U.S. trading partner, which initially triggered a massive stock market sell-off and raised concerns about rising inflation and discussions about recession.
He also criticized the president's rise in foreign policy towards long-standing foreign policy and urged Trump to stand with his long-time international allies.
In his speech on Sunday night, Pence was applauded again when he urged the United States to “continue to stand with Ukraine” in the three-year war against invading Russian forces.
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Pence praised some of Trump’s actions in the second administration, but Pence told Fox News numbers, “I do believe that some other steps the president is pulling out of the Conservative agenda should be a concern that will violate his legacy and ultimately achieve success in our party or our country.”
“So we will continue to oppose them,” Pence added.
