Mike Pence hangs presidential hopes on Reaganomics bid to corporate America
As Republican infighting intensifies, former Vice President and 2024 Republican presidential candidate Mike Pence is aiming to set himself apart on the 2024 campaign trail with a message of renewed Reaganomics.
"Ronald Reagan combined optimism, civility with a vision for getting this economy moving again," Pence told Yahoo Finance Live Tuesday (video above). "And Ronald Reagan stepped forward, not on the force of personality, not by bringing grievances forward, but because he articulated a vision of limited government, free market economics, a commitment to timeless American values, and America came roaring back."
Pence's comments came ahead of the second Republican debate at the Reagan Presidential Library on Wednesday night, where GOP presidential hopefuls will make their case for why they are the best person to be elected as the party's nominee.
Pence alluded to the divisions in the Republican Party, taking aim at rivals, including Trump, who he sees as pandering to far-right supporters.
"I believe the choice in this election for Republican primary voters is whether or not we're going to stay on the path of time-honored conservative principles — American leadership in the world of limited government, fiscal responsibility, free market economics, and values — or whether we're going to follow the siren song of populism ... unmoored to conservative principles," Pence said.
Corporate America braces for a 'vitriolic' 2024 presidential election
Any successful Republican campaign may require buy-in from the largest businesses in America and their CEOs.
By invoking the principles of Reaganomics — widely understood as policies aimed at reducing government spending, marginal tax rates, free market regulation, and inflation — Pence is aiming to appeal to business leaders through revived corporate tax cuts and a hands-off regulatory approach.
"I'm confident that step one to getting this economy back on track is to make the Trump-Pence tax cuts permanent, which ... do go away at the end of 2025," Pence said. "The other is I think we need to take a hard run at getting to a 15% corporate tax rate in this country."
Furthermore, the former vice president believes both parties are to blame for the $33 trillion national debt. By the end of Pence's term as vice president under the Trump administration, the US added $7.8 trillion to the national debt, which reached $27.7 trillion by 2021.
"I think the great challenge for our generation is going to be coming to terms with a national debt," Pence said. "I'm one of the first candidates to actually even be willing to talk about reforming mandatory spending and entitlements for younger Americans. I'll sit members of Congress down on day one [and] give them a vision for restoring fiscal solvency."
Although Pence may channel Reagan for economic inspiration, he and other Republicans may have a tougher time convincing businesses to adopt some of the GOP's culture war issues on the road to 2024.
During Pence's reelection bid as Trump's running mate in 2020, notable business executives including Disney CEO Bob Iger, Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings, and Home Depot co-founder Arthur Blank supported Biden.
Corporations have increasingly become more engaged on social issues such as LGBTQ rights, abortion rights, racial and gender equality, and climate change, which has led to feuds with Republican lawmakers.
A notable recent example was the monthslong legal dispute between Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Disney that was sparked by the company’s opposition to the state’s controversial "Don’t Say Gay" law that banned instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity inclusion in classrooms.
At the same time, companies including Disney, Target, and Bud Light have found themselves at the center of consumer backlashes amid the political polarization.
As a result, businesses are bracing for another politically divisive campaign cycle in 2024.
"It would be naive to think that ’24 is not gonna be the most divisive kind of vitriolic narrative that we've seen," Delta Air Lines chief marketing and communications officer Tim Mapes told Yahoo Finance in June.
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