Former Vice President Mike Pence said in an interview that he disagrees with Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley’s latest calls for politicians to take mental competency tests, saying that U.S. citizens “can sort that out.”
In an interview with CBS News that aired Wednesday, Pence told political correspondent Caitlin Huey-Burns that he is “confident” U.S. citizens will choose the best candidate based on what they bring to the table.
“Look, I think the American people can sort that out, I really do,” Pence told Huey-Burns. “I mean, the long and unbroken history of this country proves again and again, the wisdom and common sense and judgment of the American people.”
Haley, who announced her 2024 presidential campaign last month, made headlines after she called for mandatory “mental competency tests” for politicians older than 75 while speaking at a rally in her home state of South Carolina.
Haley’s remarks have led to some pushback by some prominent figures including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who called the former U.S. ambassador to United Nations calls for mental competency tests “absurd.”
When asked if President Biden is mentally and physically well to serve as president, Pence, whose name has been brought up as a potential GOP presidential candidate in 2024, replied that his problems with Biden are his administration’s failed policies, citing ongoing issues such as border/immigration and inflation.
“I think I think this administration has weakened America’s place in the world,” Pence said. “I think that the…dismantling what we had accomplished on the southern border has created the worst crisis in history. Runaway spending has driven the worst inflation in 40 years and on one policy after another I think the Biden administration has failed the American people and…that’s why this moment calls for new leadership.”
“You don’t have any concerns about his age, his mental fitness, his physical fitness,” Huey-Burns asked.
“My problems with President Biden are all the failed policies at home and abroad,” Pence concluded.