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"Today's article in The New York Times is disgraceful and offensive to me, my family, and our entire team," Pence's statement read.

The statement went on to say the suggestion that Pence was not working solely for Trump's agenda and re-election was "laughable and absurd."

The vice president's decision to rebut the story Sunday through an official written statement rather than verbally or through a spokesperson was a rare move from a high-ranking administration official.

The Times' report noted Pence's aggressive political schedule and fund-raising operation and said multiple advisers told donors that Pence would run for president if Trump did not.

Trump has said repeatedly that he intends to be a two-term president and has held several campaign events in advance of the 2020 election.

White House counselor Kellyanne Conway also pushed back on the Times' report in an appearance on ABC's "This Week."

"I want to make a remark about Vice President Pence," Conway said. "I've worked with him for 10 years as his pollster, as a senior adviser, and certainly work with him daily in the White House. It is absolutely true that the vice president is getting ready for 2020 -- for reelection as vice president."

"His approval rating among Republicans and conservatives and Trump voters is down slightly," Conway said. "It needs to go up."

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Mike Pence pushes back on report he's planning for ...

Aaron Carter attends Fashion Tails - Adopt A New Attitude at Lombardi House on October 6, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images)Rodin EckenrothGetty Images

Happy Sunday! Here are the weekend's top stories:

Fox News co-host Eric Bolling was suspended from the network Saturday following a report in the Huffington Post that he had sent a lewd photo to at least three of his female colleagues. Bolling's attorney told the Associated Press the allegations are uncorroborated.

The vice president issued a strong denial of a report in the New York Times that he was quietly laying the groundwork for a possible presidential run in 2020, even though President Donald Trump has not given any indication he won't seek a second term. Pence called the report "laughable and absurd."

Pop singer Aaron Carter wrote on Twitter that he is attracted to both males and females, something he discovered about himself at the age of 13. "This doesn't bring me shame, just a weight and burden I have held onto for a long time that I would like lifted off me," Carter wrote in the emotional post.

Also:

A document from a Google engineer arguing that women are less effective programmers than men has gone viral within the company.

Just 10 states will get a good view of the solar eclipse on Aug. 21.

A heat wave named Lucifer has killed at least two people in Europe .

President Donald Trump surprised some wedding guests while vacationing at his golf club in Bedminster Township, New Jersey.

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The Weekend Brief: Mike Pence Denies 2020 Bid, Fox News Suspends Host, Aaron Carter Talks Sexuality - TIME

In one June meeting, an aide to the vice president, Marty Obst, said Mr. Pences team wanted to be prepared to run in case there was an opening in 2020, according to a Republican briefed on the meeting. Nick Ayers, the vice presidents new chief of staff, has signaled to major Republican donors that Mr. Pence wants to be ready, the article reported.

The article quoted Mr. Obst denying that he and Mr. Ayers had made any private insinuations. He also called suggestions that the vice president was positioning himself for 2020 beyond ridiculous.

Mr. Pence has set up a political fund-raising organization, Great America Committee, and has hosted key figures at the vice presidents mansion, like Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council and representatives of Charles G. and David H. Koch, the billionaire conservative financiers. Last month, the vice president hosted Kelly and Joe Craft, coal barons from Kentucky.

A top White House official said Sunday that there would be no reason for the vice president to prepare his own White House bid because Mr. Trump planned to run. The president says privately and publicly often, George, that hell be there for seven and a half more years. So he plans on being a two-term president, Kellyanne Conway, the presidents counselor, told George Stephanopoulos on This Week on ABC. It is absolutely true that the vice president is getting ready for 2020, for re-election as vice president.

Mr. Stephanopoulos asked if there was any concern that Mr. Pence was running a shadow campaign. Zero concern, Ms. Conway said. That is complete fiction. That is complete fabrication. And I know that his advisers who had comments attributed to them have pushed back strongly, as has the vice president. And as am I right now unequivocally.

She added: Vice President Pence is a very loyal, very dutiful, but also incredibly effective vice president, and active vice president, with this president.

Other Republicans who have been making trips to key states or otherwise introducing themselves to donors that have raised speculation about their plans include Gov. John Kasich of Ohio and Senators Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Ben Sasse of Nebraska. Nikki R. Haley, the ambassador to the United Nations, put her longtime pollster on the payroll and has become better acquainted with New York financiers.

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Mike Pence Rejects Report That He Is Positioning for 2020 - New York Times

Vice President Mike Pence reaffirmed his party's intentions to repeal and replace Obamacare Friday night, telling a group of conservative students in Washington, D.C. that the endeavor "ain't over by a long shot."

"My fellow conservatives, let me be clear. This ain't over. This ain't over by a long shot," Pence told attendees of the National Conservative Student Conference, hosted by the Young America Foundation, according to CNN. "And President Trump and I are absolutely committed to keep our promise to the American people. We were not elected to save Obamacare we were elected to repeal and replace it."

More than a week prior to Pence's speech, the Republican-led effort to repeal the health care policy collapsed in the Senate after three GOP lawmakers Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine and John McCain of Arizona voted against their party's proposal.

The Senate has since left the chamber for its August recess , but Pence maintained that the legislative body was merely one vote away from repealing the Affordable Care Act.

"Last week it was clear that the Senate wasn't quite ready to keep that promise to the American people when they fell one vote short of moving forward on a bill to repeal and replace this disastrous policy," Pence said.

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Mike Pence on Health Care: 'This Ain't Over by a Long Shot' - TIME

After trying to go-it-alone on a failed health care repeal, the White House is cozying up to the outside conservative groups that many in the Administration distrust or feel were insufficiently supportive during the 2016 campaign. If President Trump is going to prevail on his other goals, like tax reform, he will need this kind of boost from potential allies.

On Friday, the White House plans to announce it is sending Vice President Mike Pence to a major gathering of tea party-minded activists in Richmond, Va., on Aug. 19. Organized by Americans for Prosperity, the Defending the American Dream confab is one of the largest public-facing events linked to the political and policy network convened by billionaires Charles and David Koch. The conference tends to set the tone for the year among the more than 2 million grassroot activists who push for lower taxes, less regulation and fewer subsidies.

The announcement comes on the heels of this week's summit that brought together Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, White House legislative affairs chief Marc Short and Americans for Prosperity president Tim Phillips to talk about rewriting the tax code . With that looming on the fall's legislative agenda, the White House is trying to do a better job of listening to conservatives' ideas than it did on health care , as well as to give the very voters who helped Trump a legislative victory.

As it was, the health care debacle split the White House from conservative organizations. Leaders at places like Americans for Prosperity, FreedomWorks and the Heritage Foundation all thought the plans being considered in Congressand cheered by the Presidentwere insufficient at rolling back the law they call Obamacare. Instead, they wanted an absolute repeal. In the case of the Koch network, officials said they would provide television ads defending lawmakers who voted against the scaled-back repeal measure.

In the end, only the House passed any legislation aimed at the health care law. Three Senate Republicans publicly said the measure was too draconian, and others privately were glad to see the proposal fail.

Stung by that defeat, Shorta former chief of the Koch flagship group Freedom Partners Chamber of Commercehas sought to build a broader coalition on taxes. One potential land mine: the Koch-backed groups loathe carve-outs in the tax code, and finding a way to address that without spooking the rank-and-file activists will be incredibly difficult.

More than six months into Trump's first term in office, the White House has yet to land a meaningful legislative accomplishment. To turn that tide, the White House needs to leverage the conservative base of the party that was always an uneasy fit for Trump. After all, the New York real estate developer and a mom-and-pop grocery from Indiana didn't have much in common.

The deep-pocketed conservative donors , meanwhile, were rightfully apprehensive about how Trump would conduct himself as President. Charles and David Koch, especially, were no fans of Trump or the people around him. Trump returned the favor by calling Koch and their buddies puppeteers who pull politicians' strings for personal enrichment. In the end, the Koch organizations pretended the presidential race wasn't taking place and instead focused on down-ballot contests.

This explains why Pence , a favorite of the Koch brothers, is a natural bridge between the White House and this conference of small-government activists later this month. It also helps Pence's political profile should he seek the Presidency on his own terms, as he's expected to do one day.

Pence also has been one of the most valuable voices for the White House when dealing with Congress. A former member of the House Leadership team, Pence has deep relationships with its most conservative members and has done a remarkable job of keeping the daily churn of drama coming from the Oval Office away from his team. Pence dutifully pushed for the failed health care proposal, but it was clear to many Republican lawmakers he was doing so out of deference to the President and not out of any strong belief that the plans being considered were the answer.

On taxes, it's a different story. As Indiana Governor, Pence dramatically cut taxes, including zeroing out inheritance taxes and reducing corporate rates from 7.5% to 4.9%. In his telling, he cut $3.5 billion in taxes. For the conservative activistsand their Koch patronsthat is exactly what they like to hear and what they need to motivate in support of Trump-backed efforts to accomplish similar cuts.

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Mike Pence to Headline KochBrothers Summit | Time.com - TIME