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For nearly two full weeks, nobody told Vice President Mike Pence that he had been misled by national security adviser Michael Flynn.

After privately being assured by Flynn that he had never had any discussions about Russian sanctions with that country's ambassador, Pence went on TV in mid-January and publicly parroted Flynn's denial. But on Jan. 26, President Donald Trump and a small group of senior aides learned that the Justice Department had evidence that Flynn had, in fact, discussed sanctions and misled the vice president.

Yet it would take almost a fortnight for Pence to learn the truth - and only then because of a report in The Washington Post, according to Marc Lotter, a spokesman for the vice president.

Throughout the campaign and now in office, Pence has largely managed to avoid the infighting and warring factions of the young White House by keeping his head down and soldiering loyally forward. But the incident with Flynn reveals both the benefits and risks of his approach - he has emerged largely unharmed by the scandal that led to Flynn's resignation, but his influence within the West Wing has come increasingly into question given how little he knew about his own situation.

"Does this episode strengthen Pence or weaken Pence?" asked William Kristol, editor at large of the Weekly Standard, a conservative magazine and who served as chief of staff to Vice President Dan Quayle. "That's what everybody is trying to figure out."

Pence's decision to try to stay out of the cliques that have plagued the White House has allowed him, so far, to maintain his standing as a neutral player committed to forwarding Trump's agenda on Capitol Hill. But it also appears to have left him at times outside the inner circle of Trump's brain trust.

Aides to both the president and vice president say the two men speak on the phone or in person multiple times a day. But despite their frequent communication, the president never told his No. 2 that he had been misled by Flynn - and that in defending him on the Sunday shows had put himself in a publicly compromising and embarrassing situation.

"The vice president became aware of incomplete information that he had received on Feb. 9, last Thursday night, based on media accounts," Lotter told reporters Tuesday. "He did an inquiry based on those media accounts."

Several people close to him were more blunt, saying he was "blindsided" and "frustrated."

But even as Flynn flailed, Pence did not urge Trump to fire him, or lash out against him. Instead, said two officials familiar with the situation, Pence was disappointed and suggested that Flynn could publicly apologize. Others within the White House, however, thought what Flynn had done was egregious and unacceptable.

"The vice president is a very forgiving man," said one White House official.

On Friday, Pence, chief of staff Reince Priebus and White House counsel Don McGahn held a conference call with Flynn - who had originally denied any improper communications with the Russian envoy - to go over his story again, according to two officials familiar with the call. Flynn was at Mar-a-Lago, Trump's private club in Palm Beach, Fla., during the call, while the other three men were in Washington.

Pence left the conversation troubled, as did Priebus, who expressed dismay both with Flynn's answers and the dawning reality that Flynn had deceived Pence.

By Monday, Pence was in full agreement with Priebus and others that it would be best for Flynn to go and remained involved in all top-level talks that day.

Asked how the vice president could be kept in the dark about the Flynn controversy for so long, two White House officials said it was a result of the muddled and uncertain way events unfolded rather than an intentional desire to keep him out of the loop.

On Jan. 26, when acting attorney general Sally Yates contacted McGahn about discrepancies of Flynn's account of his conversations with the Russian ambassador to the United States, McGahn took the information directly to Trump in the Oval Office that day. Trump quickly brought in chief strategist Stephen Bannon and Priebus to join the discussion with McGahn, said two White House officials, who were not authorized to speak publicly.

McGahn then conferred with Yates again the following day to try to glean more information about what Yates knew and to probe the matter further.

But McGahn, who has been friends with Pence since the vice president was a House member, did not share the information beyond that group because he had already informed the president and his top two advisers, with the expectation that anyone else who needed to know would be informed by those principals.

Several other people within the White House described the situation as "unfortunate" and "unintended," saying that Trump and McGahn did not mean to exclude Pence but were reacting to Yates - whose information was initially viewed with some skepticism - and trying to keep the information about Flynn within a tight group. At that point, Flynn was still maintaining that he had discussed nothing improper with the Russian ambassador.

Nonetheless, the two-week lag between when Trump, Bannon and Priebus learned of Flynn's misdirection and when Pence himself found out through news reports has raised speculation as to Pence's true clout - or lack thereof - within the White House.

In 2010, when Gen. Stanley McChrystal, President Barack Obama's military chief in Afghanistan, made disparaging remarks about some of Obama's senior civilian advisers, including Vice President Joe Biden, Obama's response was swift and decisive. Within 40 hours, he called McChrystal back to Washington and fired him.

Pence is not the type to demand that sort of response. Those who know him said he is thinking ahead, believing that as vice president, he is likely to outlast advisers whose positions may be more tenuous.

"Pence is trying to play a long game, keeping his head down and keeping his powder dry, assuming some of the more flamboyant types will blow up or blow out and he will be there as a trusted counselor a year or so from now," Kristol said. But, he added, "the long game can mislead you. If you end up keeping your powder dry and never using it, you end up being just another guy in the White House."

A Republican who works closely with Hill lawmakers said that Pence has repeatedly gone to the Capitol to assuage fears, only to have his reassuring words upended by a tweet from Trump and upheaval within the West Wing.

The question that legislators are trying to figure out, that Republican said, is if Pence - like most everyone else - is simply a victim to a rash and erratic president, or if he is deliberately being shut out by senior White House advisers.

The latest incident with Flynn, he added, further undermines the vice president. "This is hurtful to Pence," he said, speaking anonymously to offer a candid insight. "It's another example of him not being totally in the loop."

Pence, however, is still well-liked by lawmakers, many of whom view him as their most direct line into the White House and their best hope for enacting a conservative, Republican agenda. And they remain hopefully optimistic that he is a pivotal West Wing player.

"I think Pence has a lot of respect by the president and by a lot of us who have known him," said Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala. "He's solid, he's measured, and he fits the job beautifully."

Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., said that Pence's influence within the White House was evident simply from Flynn's downfall. "As it turned out, misleading the vice president doesn't look like it was a very good thing to do."

The Washington Post's Jenna Johnson, Abby Phillip and Sean Sullivan contributed to this report.

Read the original:
Mike Pence's delayed knowledge of Flynn's fibs hint he is outside Trump's inner circle - Chicago Tribune

The photo was shared by CSPAN host Greta Brawner, who said her husband captured the moment while shopping.

"While grocery shopping for our family, hubby sees @VP shopping for his Valentine @WholeFoods. Hope my husband follows the Veep's lead," Brawner tweeted.

Pence responded: "Don't ruin the surprise. Ready to share our 34th Valentine's Day with my valentine, Karen."

Last year, Pence shared a tribute to his wife on his Facebook account, along with a throwback photo of the couple.

The Pences have been married since 1985.

Former President Barack Obama posted a tribute to his wife, Michelle Obama, on Twitter Tuesday morning.

"Happy Valentine's Day, @MichelleObama! Almost 28 years with you, but it always feels new," he tweeted, along with a picture of the couple in the White House.

The former first lady also paid tribute to her husband, posting a picture of the former first couple's feet nestled in the sand.

"Happy Valentine's Day to the love of my life and favorite island mate, @BarackObama. #valentines" she tweeted, possibly referring to the Obama's recent trip to the British Virgin Islands.

The Obamas have been married since 1992.

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Roses in hand, Mike Pence gets into the Valentine's Day spirit - CNN

'Hot Mike Pence' is the talk of fashion week parties Page Six Said a source who's spotted the silver fox on the club circuit, he dresses a la the veep to draw attention to himself, but also to promote liberal issues he espouses. The source said, 'Hot Pence' is pro-choice, pro-environment and gay. The ...

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'Hot Mike Pence' is the talk of fashion week parties - Page Six

Keith Cooper was sentenced to 40 years in prison for a violent robbery he claimed he didnt commit. Even his prosecutor came to agree, but it took a new governor to clear his name.

For years, Mike Pence refused to pardon an innocent man. But one month after he left office as Indianas governor, his successor Eric Holcomb moved to clear Keith Coopers name.

Keith Cooper of Elkhart, Indiana, has maintained his innocence since he was charged with robbery and attempted murder in 1997. Tried and convicted in a single day, Cooper was sentenced to 40 years in prison for robbery resulting in serious injury. But while Cooper was behind bars, evidence of his innocence grew. The witnesses who testified against him recanted their statements. A DNA test implicated a different man. By 2014, Indianas parole board and the prosecutor who put Cooper away unanimously recommended Pence to issue a pardon. For years, Pence refused. It took Pences successor exactly one month to pardon him.

It was a dream finally come true, Cooper told The Daily Beast. When his family learned of the pardon, they were overcome with tears, he said. They were just as overwhelmed as I was. We were excited because this was my biggest dream. They stood by me all this time.

After years of fighting to clear Coopers name, news of the sudden pardon came as a surprise, even to his legal team.

I was not given any kind of warning so I'm flying back to Chicago now, Coopers lawyer Elliot Slosar told The Daily Beast from an airport on Thursday afternoon. Holcomb had announced Coopers pardon just hours before.

After careful and thoughtful consideration and review, something I've thought about every day over the last month, just earlier today I issued a pardon to Mr. Keith Cooper for his past and I believe wrongful armed robbery felony [conviction], Holcomb told press of the Thursday pardon. I am very much at peace pardoning him for the one he claims innocence on He has from the very outset and I believe he is innocent of that crime.

Cooper has claimed innocence since the morning of Jan. 2, 1997. Cooper, then 29, had been out buying eggs, bacon, and cereal for his wife and three children. But while he carried home his groceries, four police cars pulled up alongside him. They had received reports of a tall, thin black man snatching a purse in the area. Coopertall, thin, and blackwas put into a squad car at gunpoint.

Later, when Cooper was allowed to make contact with his wife, he told her not spend their money on bail. He was innocent, and expected to prove so quickly. In a sense, Cooper was right: Within a month, he was found not guilty of the purse theft. But while in jail, Cooper caught the attention of a police detective investigating a shooting from the previous year in Coopers apartment complex. Before he could be released from jail, he was charged with armed robbery and attempted murder.

With Cooper facing new, graver charges, his mother put up her house as collateral for his bond. He was tried and convicted in a single day, after witnesses claimed to recognize him as the man who broke into their home, demanded money, and shot a teenager in the hip. His jail cellmate testified against him, claiming Cooper had divulged information on the robbery, including information about a black hat that was found on the crime scene. The hat was tested for DNA evidence, and a lab report obtained by the Indianapolis Star concluded that Cooper can be eliminated as a possible contributor, but his lawyer made an agreement that effectively removed the DNA results as evidence. Cooper was sentenced to 40 years in prison.

Struggling for money, Coopers family moved out of the state, sometimes living in shelters. His three young children grew up out of sight. But a shred of hope remained in his appeals effort.

In 2002, an attorney ordered a second DNA test and it made clear that Cooper could not have worn the hat found on the crime scene. A third DNA test in 2004 tied the hat to Johlanis Ervin, who looked somewhat like Cooper and who was already incarcerated for a murder.

The conviction unraveled further from there.

The witnesses who testified against Cooper began recanting their statements. His cellmate wrote multiple affidavits claiming that police had coerced him into fabricating a statement against Cooper. The family of the teenager shot during the armed robbery backtracked on their testimony, claiming police had refused to show them a live lineup of suspects, and pressured them into identifying Cooper as the robber, even when they had doubts.

In 2005, the state offered him a deal: They would reduce Coopers sentence to the time he had already served and release him without overturning his conviction. The agreement let Cooper out of prison in April 2006, but kept the felony charge on his record.

Finally free, Cooper could see his family again. But the felony record still weighed heavy on him, making it difficult for him to advance in his career and making him wary of future interactions with police.

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Slowly, with the support of the witnesses who had previously testified against him, and Slosar as his new attorney, Cooper began to build a case for a new trial. Meanwhile, state officials began building a case for a pardon. In 2014, the states parole board and Michael Christofeno, the prosecutor who tried Coopers case, unanimously recommended that Pence pardon Cooper, while over 100,000 people signed a petition calling for his pardon.

But Pence refused, saying Cooper would need to exhaust all his options in the court before Pence even considered granting a pardon.

A pardon based on innocence requires a governor to substitute his judgment for that of the judicial branch, Pences general counsel Mark Ahearn wrote in a letter denying the pardon.

Coopers legal team isnt sure why Pence withheld the pardon, particularly as Coopers case drew national scrutiny when Pence joined Donald Trumps presidential ticket. Slosar can only speculate, he said.

I cant speak for Gov. Pence and the decisions he made, Slosar said. What I can tell you is that I think Gov. Pence was trying to be savvy politically. He obviously at a point was angling to be the vice president. This pardon petition was squarely on his desk. It was something that was being covered extensively in the media. I imagine Gov. Pence knew that if he had granted this pardon while the election was going on that, politically, it wasnt a palatable thing for him and the base of people he was trying to appeal to while on the ticket with Donald Trump.

When Holcomb replaced Pence on Jan. 9, Slosar was gearing up for a long legal fight. Then, exactly one month into his term, Holcomb issued the surprise pardon.

We literally had no idea. Up until today I was actually preparing for a forthcoming evidentiary hearing we were going to have in the Elkhart Circuit Court, Slosar said on Thursday from the airport. Gov. Holcomb did in four weeks what Gov. Pence did not do in four years.

The pardon will allow Cooper to continue with the life disrupted 10 years ago.

[The pardon] opens the door for me for promotions on my job, Cooper said. I dont have to worry about if the police get behind me and run my plates. Now theyll see that Im a good guy, not a criminal.

Cooper is also eligible to sue for wrongful conviction, which his co-defendant successfully did in 2014, after having his conviction overturned in 2006. The co-defendant, Christopher Parish settled with the City of Elkhart for $4.9 million. Cooper has not moved to file a wrongful conviction suit, although he would now be within his rights to do so, Elliot said.

Days after his pardon, Cooper said he was grateful for the people who had maintained his innocence, even while he was behind bars.

It shows me unity: When people come together, our voices can be heard, he said. Thats something being done right.

Read more:
Innocent Man Finally Pardoned After Mike Pence Refused to Clear His Name - Daily Beast

Charles Krauthammer expressed befuddlement at why Michael Flynn would lie to Vice President Mike Pence about something as simple as speaking to the Russian ambassador, and he went on to say it presented President Trump with a dilemma:

What strikes me is how bizarre the whole story is. This is a cover up without a crime. The idea that one should be all aghast because the incoming national-security adviser spoke with the Russian ambassador and spoke about sanctions it seems to me to be perfectly reasonable the idea that it was illegal is preposterous. When I hear Nancy Pelosi get all upset about this and how in the grip of the Russians that shows us to be, this is an absurdity. But then you ask yourself, Why did he lie about it? Even internally in talking to the vice president. That shows a tremendous lapse of judgment and a sort of lack of trustworthiness. So the president is faced with a very difficult problem: If he fires him, then it puts into question the presidents own judgment, choosing him in the first place, having to fire him within three weeks. On the other hand, this is a guy who has been advising him, stuck with him, has appeared to have done the right thing talking with the Russian ambassador, and done a crazy thing and lying about it to Pence, and hes got to decide how its going to look. Either way, hes going to be hurt, but if he is going to get rid of him, he better have somebody of stature waiting in the wings.

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Michael Flynn Cover-Up 'Without a Crime' Follows Lying to Mike ... - National Review