Hail Mary time? Poll-challenged Pence channels the NFL in touting how he can catch up with Trump

‘Well, you know, look, the Lions beat the Chiefs, right?’ the former vice president said

Maybe he’s dreaming of a Hail Mary.

That might have been on former Vice President Mike Pence’s mind when he likened his polling gap to former President Donald Trump in the 2024 race to an NFL game after a recent poll revealed a huge margin between the two candidates.

His comments came after a recent CNN poll of Republican-leaning voters showed the former president carrying 52 per cent compared to former VP Pence, who is at 7 per cent.

“You’re trailing the former president by about 40 points,” one co-host noted during a Friday interview on a “Fox & Friends”. “How do you make up that gap?”

“Well, you know, look, the Lions beat the Chiefs, right?” Mr Pence replied, making an unexpected reference to Thursday night’s football game in which the unheralded Detroit Lions defeated the Kansas City Chiefs, who are Super Bowl champions.

“The American people love competition,” Mr Pence continued.

“I think Labor Day hits, and the debate really begins. And we’re just going to go out. We’re going to tell our story,” he added.

Mr Pence continued, “I say with great humility I really believe that I’m the most qualified, the most experienced, the most tested and proven conservative in this race. We’re going to carry that message forward, and we’ll let the people in Iowa and New Hampshire and every state across the country decide.”

FiveThirtyEight polling averages show an even wider margin between the two former running mates, Mr Pence has 4.7 per cent compared to Mr Trump’s 52.7 per cent.

The former vice president took quite a few jabs at his former boss during a speech in New Hampshire earlier this week as he continues to try to distance himself from the Trump administration.

“When Donald Trump ran for president in 2016, he promised to govern as a conservative. And together, we did just that,” the former vice president said on Wednesday. “But it’s important for Republicans to know that he and his imitators in this Republican primary make no such promise today.”