this is a picture of the university of utah, where the debate will take place. the moderator will be susan page of "usa today." c-span' is live coverage starts at 8:00 p.m. eastern. with a preview program. p.m.ebate starts at 9:00 we focus now on mike pence ahead of his debate tonight with senator kamala harris. we are joined with andrea neal, editor of indianapolis star, pence: thethe book " path to power." -- where does that name come from? back: i suspect that goes -- soundbites," what is

that come from? guest: i suspect that comes back from -- he made a name from himself on talk radio. idea muste soundbite have stemmed from those years. host: five presidential debates usually only happened once in an election cycle. mike pence comes into this as the veteran. he goes back to 2016. what do we know about his debate style and what are your spec tonight? he was deemed the winner against the debate -- guest: he was deemed the winner against tim kaine and one of those polls taken after the confrontation. tim kaine did the interrupting and pence refrained. he remained unruffled throughout. this is a skill he honed way back in high school. he attended columbus north high

school which had a nationally prize-winning speech and debate team. his senior year, he and the rest of the team went to seattle for the national forensic league competition and he placed third in a category called impromptu. in that the division, you are given a topic right there on the spot. you have 30 seconds to think about it and then you must address that topic for five minutes. he is good at this and he has been doing it for a long time. host: he said tim kaine did interrupting and 2016, how aggressive do you expect the vice president to be tonight on the faces senator penny on the debate stage? -- senator kamala harris on the debate stage? do you expect harris to be more aggressive? guest: i think she will have zingers based on policy, he will be careful to look like he is not attacking her at all times. attacksup personal

years ago after he ran a very negative campaign back in 1988. he is not going to want to look like he is after kamala harris personally. i think he will stay focused on policy. he will attempt to show contrast on issues including law & order, foreign policy experience. i think he is going to try to show he has more expertise on domestic and foreign policy issues. host: explain what confessions of a negative campaigner was? 1988 campaign,s he went through soul-searching. a lot of it stemmed from the way he found people responding to him. in this negative campaign, he ran against phil sharp who was a well-regarded incumbent. in a desperate measure at the end, the pence people put out a push poll that was really not antually based and was attempt to paint shop are way

and swing the election. didn'te, he said people return his calls. i understood his campaign made a stake. he wrote a mea culpa and he explained why he felt negative campaigning was wrong. he didn't forsake all negative campaigning because he proceeded to say if your negative statement is grounded in policy then it is acceptable. but negative campaigning for the sake of negative campaigning is not moral, essentially. host: talking to andrea neal this morning, author of "pence: the path to power "-- cap the power -- the path to power" focusing on the debate tonight. here's a picture on your screen of kingsbury hall where the candidates are to be seated. we are expecting for plexiglass screens to be in front of them

for covid-19 precautions. now is the time to call in. it is 202-748-8001 if you support the trump-pence ticket. 202-748-8000 if you support the biden-harris to get. if you are undecided, 202-748-8001. --202-748-8002. power?s the path to guest: it was a long road starting in high school when he first ran for student government office as a junior in high school and was defeated and took it personally. then he ran for senior class president and one -- won. that was the beginning of the path to power. he had several false starts running for congress in 1988 and 1990. wasorked for a think tank, a talk show host, and then saw an opening and ran for congress in 2001.

he has been on that path ever since, including what some would say a path with ambitions toward the presidency. host: in usa today on the opinion page, kurt cardella, a senior advisor with the lincoln project and a former spokesperson with republican committees on capitol hill. this is what he said about his expectations for mike pence. "he was deep with conviction, he won't be obnoxious. he will get the kind of performance that traditional conservatives, which donald trump was capable of living. pence is able to keep them on board and resist the temptation to jump ship to joe biden. this is the stop the bleeding debate. " guest: i agree to a extent. punchingrump is

aggressively. pence is going to want to look moderate in style if not in substance and he is going to maintain a polite tone. he is to maintain a courteous tone. i think it will be vigorous because he is a vigorous debate or and has a lot of facts at his -- and i think people use them. i think he will be prepared to scrutinize commie harris -- scrutinize kamala harris's record. host: what do we know about how he is preparing? who is helping him prepare? guest: i don't know so i can't enter that question. one thing i can be certain of is he has been preparing. that would perhaps be another contrast between pence and trump , who seemed to think the presidency itself was adequate preparation. spitz -- pence will have spent a lot of time repairing and getting ready to scrutinize

harris's record. host: this is rebecca i'm a port orange, florida -- rebecca in port orange, florida. on the line for those who support the trump-pence ticket. i don't have a question. with the concerned mail-in ballots. i don't see that many biden signs in the area i live in. i am just concerned about the mail-in ballots. host: do you think mail-in ballots is going to be one of the big issues tonight? i think theuest: trump administration has articulated the concern with potential fraud with mail-in ballots. indiana has any voter id law for some time. it is upheld by the courts and it is useful when you show up at the polls to cast about.

in indiana, absentee ballot voting has been accepted for decades and that has gone well also. i am sure the trump deployingtion investigators and lawyers to make sure that kind of fraud with mail-in ballots what occur. -- ballots will not occur. it is one of those issues playing out differently because of covid. yesterday was the first day for voting in her -- in indiana. the lines were very long. people want to vote in person to know their votes are counted and are willing to wait in line if need be and avoid the crowds on election day. i think there will be early voting in those states that permit it as well as the mail-in voting. -- a good time to go to a caller in indiana. this is gary on the line that supports the biden harris

ticket. when i make a production on something, it is based more -- rather than personal preference. with kamala harris, the way you , --talking [indiscernible] he's got everything going for him. i wish kamala harris the best of luck, maybe she can put up a good fight, i don't know. -- pence guest: he has learned from his mistakes. one of the most notorious ones was in 20,000 -- was in 2015.

there was a dustup over the freedom restoration act which was signed and law by governor pence. he went on to defendant. 'sr the first time in anyone memory, he crumbled under george stephanopoulos's questions. it was pretty much a disaster. from that day forward, he valve that is not going to happen again. host: this is amy out of north carolina for those who support the trump-pence ticket. caller: i want people to understand what this election is about. it is not about trump and pence and biden and harris. or goingetween freedom towards socialism. they are talking about taking away the second amendment. they want to get rid of the electoral college.

beto o'rourke is going to be in charge of taking away your guns. bernie sanders is going to be in charge of health care. that is what is is going to be. -- that is what it is going to be. then don't believe in private ownership, the government controls everything. this is not about people and personalities, this is between whether or not we are going to save america, keep our freedom, or we are going to go towards socialism. host: does that sound like --? guest: i think that is the case that mike pence will try. to make tonight. we know mike pence is a strong defender of the free market and freedoms. he is a philosopher of the constitution, agrees with john locke and the natural rights of life, liberty, and private property. i think you're given a good preview of the comments he may make tonight. host: back to schererville, indiana.

this is evan for the line of --se who support what is your thought about what is going to happen between kamala harris and mike pence tonight? i think kamala harris she probably when it but shouldn't be running. to beould be wanting appointed attorney general of the u.s. i thick should be good at that -- i think she would be good at that. guest: i think people will be judging both candidates tonight not for their talent as vice president but as their potential for becoming president. in the case of donald trump and joe biden, there is concern among the electorate that for one reason or another they might not be able to serve out four

years and that harris or pence could fill the shoes of the presidency. i think voters will be evaluating them as potential presidents as much as vice presidents. --t: from twitter, this is he or she saying thinks trump is a puppet. notis a credible pence does practice his faith as vp." his fate is sot: strong. i would say authentic. he has used whatever opportunity toore him as a chance promote his vision of the common good. looksk we can all say it hypocritical to be an avowed -- andtical christian

about even juggle christian working for trump who is occasionally vulgar. view, donald trump is the vessel god placed before him to achieve his own vision, his casesals, which in some might be religious in nature. his faith goes back many years. he was raised as a roman catholic. he had a conversion moment when he attended hanover college. the 1990's, he was still describing himself as a catholic but as an evangelical catholic. evangelicalith negative around the country and they believe in him. i think issues with his religious views can best be seen , one is abortion and his other is his view towards israel. i think his view above is

grounded in his reading of the bible. he believes life begins at conception but his opposition to roe v. wade is grounded in that it was improperly decided and should be more properly decided at the state level. there is no doubt he turns to bible passages to justify his policies on both abortion and israel. host: about 10 minutes left in the segment. on can call in online's -- lines split up. if you support the biden-harris ticket. the748-8001 if you support trump-pence ticket. undecided --four

for undecided. caller: i flick trump had a lot going for him in 2016 and he had a lot of help. there are things in his favor, no emails, no wiki leaks, no james comey. people know about russia, people know about facebook and they know about twitter. people didn't like hillary. [no audio] andrea neal? of socials summer unrest, the summer of mask wearing come the year of covid-19 are issues that are actually different from what the country was facing in 2016. some ways to think in the election is going to be a referendum on the trump administration's policies on

covid, online order. i think mike pence -- on law & order. i think pence is going to make a case on law & order. i think he's going to blame democratic leaders for some of the unrest we have seen that has resulted in violence. i think the republicans are hoping to capitalize on that. mike pence can claim a law & as he is a strong defender of law enforcement, full funding of police, and such. i think the 2020 election is a different ballgame from 2016. host: another twitter comment, this one saying "what do you think about pence's record in public health emergencies? outbreak and the pandemic task force?" caller: he took black -- guest:

he took flak for underestimating committees being impacted by the -- crisis. i think at the beginning of the covid crisis, donald trump appointed pence to the task force. i think that was a good call because one thing mike pence can do is bring a sense of calm to an issue. he does believe in science. critics aside, i think he was more than willing to listen to what the best scientific minds around the world had to say. early inhat happened the process is president trump was the one who wanted to be the face of the pandemic response which probably prevented mike pence from asserting leadership that i think he could have brought to bear on the issue. on public health, his record is mixed. if you go back to his days in congress, he voted against

obama's affordable care act but he pushed for a state waiver that led to extensive expansion of state medicaid called the indiana program. a is a mixed record but commitment overall to public health. sparta,is is george in that line for those who support biden-here's -- biden-harris. caller: compass what do be a dictator -- trump is wanting to be a dictator like the general of north korea. this is ridiculous. ohio this is sally out of on the line for those who support the trump-pence ticket. caller: i am proud and loving everything president trump has done for our country. i think he should go down as our

best president. i love all he is doing. i encourage all that he is doing. i hope they can approve this new judge they are putting in and it can go in before the election. people seepray more his goodness and his love for this country. i don't want to live under a communist country. i have studied communism when i was in school and i have seen this coming about more and more over the decades. coming, can see this the news channels are not covering our president. they are just telling lies and most people are watching all the various stations. we watch fox, that is the only station they haven't had control of. they are telling people the truth. host: andrea neal on the

nomination and upcoming confirmation process of judge merrick -- of judge amy coney barrett, howdy think that place tonight -- how do you think that plays tonight? guest: pence was largely responsible for convincing trump one of the biggest contributions he can make to the conservative movement was transforming the face of the judiciary. barrett wouldney be mike pence's dream justice on the supreme court. he is a strict constructionist, he is a lawyer. ofwas a student of a couple well-known conservative constitutional scholars. believer in the separation of powers and federalism. i think he will defend amy coney

barrett tonight with every ounce of strength he has. i think her being seated on the supreme court would be a great compliment and pence -- in pence's eyes. i wouldn't be surprised if pence submits a tie-breaking vote on her appointment. you: another tweet for saying the vice president is a career politician. when it comes to trump's criticism of career politicians, how has he square that with his vice president -- how has he squared that with his vice president? guest: i agree that he is a career politician, but that is what trump needed. he needed someone with experience with the legislative branch. i think that as trump was weighing the possible running mates that that weight in his

favor. i think trump felt he didn't come with the kind of baggage that chris christie would have come with or new anchorage. -- or newt gingrich. host: this is stacy who has been waiting in mclean, virginia on the line for those who support the biden harris ticket. caller: thank you for taking my call. pence cannot run on religion because religious freedom was discrimination based on religious beliefs. they heat -- he can run in the coronavirus because he handled it the way he did the hiv outbreak in indiana. far as the law & order. nazis andklansmen and white supremacists was shot until federal police officer,

who shot police -- sen. lee: stations on fire, who tore down statues. those of the people the fbi have been arresting, not black people. they've been blaming black people for the crimes the white supremacists commit. pence has no record to run on. he should be running from the law, not running for office. host: we will give you the final minute and a half or so. guest: i think pence is a man of moderation. he believes the old proverb moderation in all things, certainly when it comes to style. on matters of substance, you could arguably say his religious views inform his position on some issues. i think tonight he will avoid social issues to the extent possible. i think he understands the issues americans care most about involve right now public health, they involve the size and extent of government.

one thing we have not talked inut is his fiscal views this regard differs from donald trump. pence off and went against a republican party because he could not understand why they weren't doing something to tackle the deficit. i think if he has the opportunity to go to some of those traditional republican issues tonight, he might do so to firm up what i guess you would call the establishment republican base which trump obviously has struggled with. i think we may have some surprises tonight in some of the things he says. i'm looking forward to a spirited debate. offer --rea neil's author of the book any formal editorial page editor. thank you for joining us this washington journal continues. host: taking some time to focus on the vice presidential candidates ahead of tonight's debate.