Evangelical Christians represent a key constituency for Trump and view Pence as an important ally in the White House.
By Jessica Donati and Peter Nicholas
In the first two years of the Trump presidency, Vice President Mike Pence has worked to put religion at the heart of key diplomatic efforts, steering hundreds of millions in U.S. aid toward Christians and other minorities who were victimized by Islamic State.
Among the measures he has favored, Pence pushed to redirect U.S. money that would have been distributed by the United Nations widely in Iraqi areas targeted by Islamic State toward Christians, Yazidis and other minorities. He also advocated last year for the imposition of sanctions on officials in Turkey — a North Atlantic Treaty Organization ally — over a detained U.S. pastor.
Both were causes championed by the administration’s evangelical supporters, who represent a key constituency for President Trump. They view Pence as an important ally in the White House. His foreign policy actions — he also has played a leading role in the effort to oust Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and criticizing Europe for helping Iran circumvent U.S. sanctions — contrast with the low profile he has kept on domestic issues.
In an Oval Office meeting in late 2017, Pence proposed a plan that would redirect $55 million out of $75 million that had been earmarked by USAID, the State Department’s development arm, for a U.N. program to restore basic services in cities liberated from Islamic State in the Nineveh plains of Iraq.
Officials at the State Department and USAID argued that wide distribution of the reconstruction funds through the U.N. was the best way to guarantee stability and protect American interests by helping millions of Iraqis displaced by Islamic State return home. Pence told President Trump that he wanted instead to use the bulk of the money to rebuild Iraq’s Christian community and other minority groups.
Originally published by MarketWatch, 02.19.2019, republished for educational, non-commercial purposes under a fair use license.