![Pence rolls out Republican policy agenda ahead of midterms](https://cbsnews3.cbsistatic.com/hub/i/r/2022/02/02/4f1e6111-cc1d-4949-8324-265976d90fbb/thumbnail/1200x630/8209887324f6cbb26bd0df8a5cfda682/gettyimages-1236405790.jpg)
Pence rolls out Republican policy agenda ahead of midterms
CBSN
Former Vice President Mike Pence rolled out a Republican policy platform on Thursday ahead of the midterm elections — and possibly his own 2024 presidential bid.
Pence's "Freedom Agenda" platform, released through his nonprofit group Advancing American Freedom, entails rolling back taxes and regulations, securing the border, and energy independence, as well as standing "strong against Russia" and "confronting communist China." The platform makes little mention of former President Trump, who has lambasted Pence over the 2020 presidential election certification and said voters wouldn't "accept" Pence as a 2024 vice presidential candidate.
The platform has a heavy cultural element to it as well, what Pence calls the "American culture pillar," and includes a pledge to "save women and protect women's sports" by "ensuring that sports competitions are between those who share their God-given gender." The platform also aims to reform big tech, and prevent censorship by social media platforms, a key conservative cause in recent years.
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Vice President JD Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a high-stakes meeting at this year's Munich Security conference to discuss the Trump administration's efforts to end the war in Ukraine. Vance said the U.S. seeks a "durable" peace, while Zelenskyy expressed the desire for extensive discussions to prepare for any end to the conflict.
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Washington — The Trump administration on Thursday intensified its sweeping efforts to shrink the size of the federal workforce, the nation's largest employer, by ordering agencies to lay off nearly all probationary employees who hadn't yet gained civil service protection - potentially affecting hundreds of thousands of workers.
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It was Labor Day weekend 2003 when Matt Scribner, a local horse farrier and trainer who also competes in long-distance horse races, was on his usual ride in a remote part of the Sierra Nevada foothills — just a few miles northeast of Auburn, California —when he noticed a freshly dug hole along the trail that piqued his curiosity.