Pence Battles Boos, Tucker Carlson’s Tough Questions at Iowa Family Leadership Summit

Former Vice President Mike Pence has long been a standard bearer for the evangelical Christian movement in American politics.

On Friday, before a gathering of hundreds of Christian faithful at the 12th Annual Family Leadership Summit in downtown Des Moines, it felt, to some degree, that the GOP candidate for president had lost a good portion of that faithful base.

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Trump Skips Des Moines Family Leader Summit amid Tension with Vander Plaats, but Plans Iowa Town Hall Next Week

Donald Trump won’t be attending the Family Leadership Summit in Des Moines later this week. The former president has other plans. But Trump will be back in Iowa next week for a second town hall with Fox News host Sean Hannity, eschewing influential Christian conservative leader Bob Vander Plaats‘ cattle call of Republican presidential candidates for his own political show. Vander Plaats, who has said it’s time conservatives “turn the page” on Trump, is hosting his annual summit on Friday. Most of Trump’s rivals for the GOP nomination will be there — including former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, former Vice President Mike Pence, Ohio businessman and anti-woke crusader Vivek Ramaswamy, U.S. Senator Tim Scott (R-SC), and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Trump’s nearest competitor in the polls. The summit is a big deal. Put together by Vander Plaats’ Family Leader, a suburban Des Moines-based evangelical Christian organization that aims to inspire “Christ-like leadership in the home, the church, and the government,” the summit is now in its 12th year. It’s seen as a top stop for conservative candidates seeking the Republican presidential nomination in the first-in-nation caucus state. If nothing else, the day-long event is a great way to meet…

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Commentary: GOP Field Braces for Tucker Carlson Iowa Inquisition

More than one Republican presidential campaign expressed surprise, even trepidation, when RealClearPolitics broke the news in March that Tucker Carlson would moderate a presidential forum hosted by the Family Leader.

In the spring, several candidates accepted Bob Vander Plaats’s invitation to address his influential group of social and religious conservatives. None knew Carlson would be waiting for them on stage in the summer. “This isn’t prepping for an interview,” said a senior aide to one presidential candidate. “It’s an interrogation.”

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GOP Presidential Hopefuls Commit to Family Leadership Summit, Important Faith-Based Stop on the Road to the Iowa Caucuses

After a bit of a lull in Iowa’s parade of presidential candidates, the summer campaign season will soon start to heat up again in the kick-off caucus state. 

U.S. Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) on Tuesday announced he’ll speak at next month’s FAMILY Leadership Summit in Des Moines, billed as “the Midwest’s largest gathering of Christians seeking cultural transformation in the family, Church, government, and more.” 

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Iowa Evangelicals with Long Memories Could Be a Problem for Trump in the Kickoff Caucus State

Former President Donald Trump’s run for the White House could run into trouble in Iowa from evangelicals unhappy about his criticisms of the pro-life movement following mostly disappointing midterms for Republicans. 

Iowa’s Bob Vader Plaats, a leading voice among the Hawkeye State’s evangelical voters, certainly hasn’t forgotten what Trump said in early January. 

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