Days after the election, Mike Pence called a close friend for a 30-minute conversation to analyze what had just happened and what it all might mean for the future of the Republican Party. According to this person, the vice president was upbeat about the success of GOP candidates lower down the ballot, but Pence also sounded skeptical about the various lawsuits and legal challenges that the President’s campaign was preparing.

“I’m not sure (he spoke) with the vigor of a man who is confident these suits will be successful,” the friend told CNN…

Some Republicans don’t think Trump is likely to run for a third time in four years, despite the President floating the idea privately.

“I don’t think (Pence) is boxed out of 2024,” said another senior Republican official.

The official predicted Trump is likely to fade and that Pence will benefit from patiently biding his time. For now, that means remaining — at least tangentially — on board with Trump’s evidence-free claims that the 2020 election was stolen, and the fundraising he has done off of it.