Pence's reward

President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence appear to have come to a détente after nearly a week of silence, anger and finger-pointing.

The two met Monday evening in the Oval Office and had a “good conversation,” according to a senior administration official. It was their first time speaking since last Wednesday, when Trump incited his supporters to storm the Capitol building as Pence was presiding over certification of November's election results. Pence and his family were forced into hiding.

During their conversation, the official said, Trump and Pence pledged to continue to work for "the remainder of their term."

[...]

Pence allies have expressed outrage over what they have described as a malicious attempt by the president to try to scapegoat the vice president by pressuring him to take the impossible step of trying to block certification of the November election results by invoking powers he did not posses. After days of behind-the-scenes arm-twisting, Trump repeatedly singled out Pence during his pre-riot rally, wrongly insisting the certification could be halted as it got underway.

Trump then continued to tweet that Pence “lacked courage" as the president's supporters stormed the Capitol. Trump never bothered to check on the vice president's safety as Pence spent hours in a secure holding area with his staff and family as the rioters chanted about wanting to hang him outside the Capitol doors.

Trump, for his part, was furious that Pence refused to go along with his scheme — raging about the decision behind closed doors.

But Trump and Pence apparently chosen to bury the hatchet — at least for the time being. The senior administration official said that, during their Oval Office meeting, Trump and Pence discussed the week ahead and reflected on their accomplishments over the last four years.

The two also “reiterated that those who broke the law and stormed the Capitol last week do not represent the America first movement backed by 75 million Americans, and pledged to continue the work on behalf of the country for the remainder of their term," the official's readout said.

  ABC

And, I suppose, they believe it.

Even with Trump still in place, Pence has taken on some of the roles of the executive as Trump retreats ever further into a world of anger and conspiracy and continues to rage about his fate.

Pence, for instance, was the one coordinating with lawmakers and the D.C. National Guard during the Capitol siege. And on Friday, he was the one who called the family of Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who died of injuries sustained during the attack, to express condolences.

Pence no doubt will want to run for president in 2024.

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.