WASHINGTON (AP) - Vice President Mike Pence shuttled through the Capitol's empty, drafty hallways one blustery winter day in search of a breakthrough.It was January 2019, and the government had been partly shut down for weeks in a standoff between his boss, President Donald Trump, and Democrats who refused to fund his border wall.
Shadowed by a security detail, Pence traversed the closed building, fielding gripes and asks from GOP senators, nodding, moving on to his next meeting.A lurking reporter asked Pence as he passed: What was his role in these critical talks?“I am the vice president of the United States,” Pence replied levelly, and kept walking.What that has come to mean after more than three years at Trump's side is a blend of.