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US President Donald Trump whispers to US Vice President Mike Pence before a meeting with South Korea's President Moon Jae-in in the Cabinet Room of the White House June 30, 2017 in Washington, DC.(Photo: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI, AFP/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON Just one day after President Trump's oldest son stunned the political world by releasing emails showing he actively sought damaging information about Hillary Clinton from the Russian government, Mike Pence offered aninteresting and rather dramaticdescription of what it's really like to be vice president.

According to Pence, being aleader can feel like being on a roller coaster.

"You need to keep your arms and legs in the ride at all times," he told student leaders Wednesday at American University. "Put the roll bar down, because you just got to hang on."

The roller coaster analogy appeared to be a particularly apt one these days for Pence, who is trying to navigate the latest controversy to hit the White House after this week's revelations that Donald Trump Jr. met last summer with Kremlin-linked lawyer NataliaVeselnitskaya after he wastold the Russian governmentwould provide the information as part of its support for his father's campaign.

After the news broke, Pence issued a statement that appeared to distance himself from the Trump campaign.Pence is not focused on stories about the campaign, particularly stories about the time before he joined the ticket," his spokesman Marc Lotter said Tuesday. The meeting, which also included then-Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort and son-in-law Jared Kushner, took place right after Trump clinched the Republican nomination last summer.

Read more:

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Pencesreaction to thedisclosure appeared to be a stark departure from his usualblanket rejections that there was any contact between Trumpland and the Russians, as well as from Pence's usual effusive praise of Trump.

We all see whats happening here. The roof is falling in on the president and the administration, said political commentator Stuart Rothenberg.I took it as an effort to create a separate narrative. Its hard for me to believe its anything else.

Ron Klain, who worked for former Vice Presidents Joe Biden and Al Gore, put it more bluntly on Twitter: "I've never seen any @VP statement that so distanced himself from the @POTUS."

But spokesman Lotter arguedWednesday that his originalstatement explained that Pence is still focused on advancing Trump's agenda. The vice president, Lotter said,continues to have a packed schedule that recently includedmultiple meetings Tuesday on health care and a trip to Kentucky on Wednesday to help sell the GOP bill. "Any suggestion that he is distancing himself is laughable armchair punditry," Lotter said.

Yet another adviser, who was not authorized to speak publicly,said Pence istaking a wait-and-see approach to the latest controversybefore mounting a robustdefense of the administration.

The adviser said Pence is handling the situation in the same way he did with the biggest bombshellduring the campaign season the release of the Access Hollywood tapes in which Trump bragged about groping women. Pence canceled a campaign trip to Wisconsin and laid low for several days, until Trump apologized during the debate. In the same way, Pence is letting Trump take the lead on responding to the latest Russia revelations, the adviser said.

The measured response is evidence of the tight rope Pence continues to walk as he tries to support his boss without sacrificing his own reputation and political future.

With growing criminal and congressional investigations into possible collusion between the Trump team and the Russian government, Pence has tried to keep his distance from potential scandals but hes still had to lawyer up hiring last month Richard Cullen, former U.S. attorney who is chairman of Washington, D.C.-based law firm McGuire Woods.

Pence may be playing it more cautiously since he has been sent out time and again to defend the president on many controversial issues, from Russia to voter fraud claims Trump has made without evidence.

And some of his previous comments have come back to bite him. Pence, in a January appearance on CBSs Face the Nation, dismissed as bizarre rumors the question of whether anyone in the Trump campaign had contact with Russians who were trying to meddle in the election.

"Of course not," Pence said when posed a similar question by Chris Wallace of Fox News Sunday. "Why would there be any contacts between the campaign?"

Trump Jr.'s emails, of course, call these comments into question.So while Mike Murphy, another longtime friend of Pence and an Indiana political strategist, said Pence might be one of the most loyal people hes ever met he notes thathes also not nave.

Murphy said the facts surrounding the Trump Jr. meeting are continuing to emerge, so it doesnt make sense for Pence to give a full-throated defense of the situation yet. I dont think its disloyal, he said. I think its prudent.

Rothenberg, the political commentator, said Pence faces the classic problem all vice presidents have:They need the president to do well and their job is to be supportive. But at the same time, they have to look out for their own future. And these kinds of controversies make that job difficult.

Hes trying to walk those fine lines. `Yeah, Im supportive, but I didnt know about hisstuff, Rothenberg said. Hell have to go back and forth on this line depending upon the next shoe to drop.

But those who know Pence well say they expect him to remain loyal to Trump, even as he takes steps for self-preservation. He is 150 percent a Trumpster now, said Rex Early, former chairman of the Indiana GOP who headed the Trump/Pence campaign in the state. Hes loyal, as he should be.

Calling Pence the ultimate team player, Indiana Republican Bob Grand said Pences comment was just a statement of fact, not an attempt to distance himself from the situation.

Hes cherished the moment that he got selected," said Grand, a top GOP fundraiser and Pence friend who helped Pence celebrate his recent birthday on Air Force 2. "He worked tirelessly on the campaignThats a team. Hes with the president.

As he spoke to students at American University, Pence did not address the controversy, but he did call Trump a champion, a visionary and a bold leader who is restoring Americas rightful role as leader of the free world.White House spokesman Sarah Sanders insisted Tuesday "there's absolutely no distance between the president and vice president.

Yet there is a distinct difference in how each leader isapproaching the latest bombshell.

While Trump has vented publicly, lashing out at the media and other perceived enemies, Pence in recent days has taken a business-as-usual approach: tweetingphotos of himself riding horses in Rock Creek Park, meeting with Senate Majority Mitch McConnell on Capitol Hill, and praising Trump's European trip.

And while there are plenty of news stories quoting exasperated White House aides and unhappiness in Trumps inner circle, there are rarely comments from Penceor those close to him about his state of mind.

Pences Wednesday speech at American University shed little insight, but he did have these lessonsfor the students: Aspire to be men and women of character. Respect and defer to those above you in authority. Have a healthy dose of courage. As President Trump said just a few months ago, nothing worth doing ever came easy, Pence said.

That's another lesson Pence may be learning in this White House, as the vice president has hitplenty of obstacles in recent weeks even beyond the congressional and special counsel investigations involving current and past members of the Trump administration.

It's not just Russia squabbles. Pence has also had the recent headache of heading the voter fraud commission President Trump created, seemingly in hopes of backing his unsubstantiated claims millions of fraudulent votes cost him the popular vote last year. The commission has sparked a backlash from secretaries of state including from Pences home state and the American Civil Liberties Union is among the groupssuing Pence's panel even before its first scheduled meeting next week.

What's more, some of the policy positions Pence cares mostabout havent yet come to fruition.

On the administrations top policy goal of repealing and replacing Obamacare, Pence has not yet seen the same success in the Senate as he did in the House in helping lawmakers find a way to get enough votes for passage. His boss continues to complicate negotiations with his shifting comments on how to proceed, frustrating senators who are already exasperated with the distractions of the daily developments on the Russia investigation.

David McIntosh, a longtime friend of Pences who runs the Club for Growth, said Pence hasnt let the ongoing investigations deter him from focusing on the legislative agenda. I dont think its a factor at all in how hes doing the job, said McIntosh, whose group is pushing for repeal of the Affordable Care Act.

Still, as the White House continues to put out political fires, there was much speculation that Pence was looking out for his own future when he created in May a super PAC, allowing him to raise money that can be used to help candidates but also strengthens his position in the party.

The New York Times recently detailed Pences wooing of donors, including through regular dinners held at the vice presidents official residence.

Grand, however, said Pences PAC is just another way hes helping the team, in addition to directly raising money for various party organizations, candidates and other PACs.The question is, how do you strengthen the team? This is another avenue, the Indiana Republican said.

And he dismissed the question of whether Pence could reach the point where he no longer wants to be part of that team.

I honestly dont think theres a breaking point, Grand said. Hes the vice president of the United States. I think hes doing a great job. Every day, all day long, the administration is under attack. Time and time again, you listen to all the commentary of people who speculate about all these things. From his standpoint I would hope, I dont know, but I would hope, that he just continues to do his job.

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How Vice President Mike Pence is weathering the Donald Trump Jr. Russia revelations - USA TODAY