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Pence is poaching Heritage staffers for his globalist think tank

December 23, 2025 | | Print Article

Efforts at a victory lap by former Vice President Mike Pence’s team were dashed by a reality check on those jumping ship to his public policy advocacy organization.

The aims of accountability in and around the federal government since President Donald Trump’s return to the White House have repeatedly led to unelected bureaucrats choosing resignation over getting in line with the will of the people. As similar discontent swept the conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation, reactions to those leaving for Pence’s alternative Advancing American Freedom saw nothing but an upside for Heritage.

Touting the poached employees with a thread proclaiming “The Conservative Movement lives here,” AAF shared its list of 13 new hires, including John Malcolm, who had headed Heritage’s Meese Center for Legal and Judicial Studies.

Speaking with the Wall Street Journal, Pence argued that Heritage was “abandoning its principles,” suggesting to the newspaper, “Why these people are coming our way is that Heritage and some other voices and commentators have embraced big-government populism and have been willing to tolerate antisemitism.”

In addition to supporting Trump’s tariffs, Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts had initially voiced favor for free speech after Tucker Carlson had taken flak for interviewing Nick Fuentes, only to later apologize.

According to an internal email obtained by The Hill, which reported that “staff discontent had been growing” prior to Roberts’s commentary, the think tank president reacted to those leaving Heritage by saying, “We wish them well, though the manner of their departures speaks volumes.”

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While Malcolm was set to lead the Edwin Meese III Institute for the Rule of Law with AAF after it raised $12 million toward the goal, Heritage’s Chief Advancement Officer Andy Olivastro detailed that the think tank’s former vice president along with Jessica Reinsch had so much tried to take a high road as they’d been kicked to the curb the week prior for “conduct inconsistent with Heritage’s mission and standards …”

“Our mission is unchanged, and our leadership is strong and decisive,” detailed in a statement that mentioned “fiduciary duty and intellectual property removal” regarding Malcolm and Reinsch. “Heritage has always welcomed debate, but alignment on mission and loyalty to the institution are non-negotiable. A handful of staff chose a different path–some through disruption, others through disloyalty.”

Looking ahead for Heritage without those who would align themselves with Pence, conservatives cheered what this would mean for the think tank.

The Federalist co-founder Sean Davis wrote on X, “Great news. Perfect example of addition by subtraction. Not only are a bunch of whiny malcontents who were only rowing backwards now no longer a problem at Heritage, the only jobs they could find are with a guy who has no future whatsoever in electoral politics or national policy.”

Likewise, as conservative filmmaker Robby Starbuck announced he was staying at Heritage and contended “these resignations have a lot more to do with 2028 than it does with anything else,” The Daily Wire’s Mary Margaret Olohan posted to X, “Donald Trump Jr. and Alex Bruesewitz also hailing these departures as a win for Heritage, mocking those who would go work for Mike Pence and saying that Heritage can replace them with staff loyal to MAGA. Perhaps not the splashy resignation those departing hoped it would be!”

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The First Son said, “Personally, I think it’s great news for Heritage that a bunch of Trump-hating RINOs are leaving. Anyone who would want to go work for Mike Pence’s globalist never-Trump organization isn’t MAGA and definitely doesn’t put America First!”

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Kevin Haggerty
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