the new president of the Heritage Foundation, the powerful conservative think tank that has shaped GOP policy for decades. The announcement came during a closed-door meeting at the organization’s Capitol Hill headquarters, where Pence—flanked by Republican lawmakers and Heritage trustees—vowed to “return this institution to its Reagan-era roots with unapologetic conservative leadership

Pence’s appointment, effective immediately, marks a strategic pivot for both the former vice president and the think tank. Sources say he plans to leverage Heritage’s “Project 2025″—a 920-page presidential transition blueprint—into a “roadmap for the next conservative administration,” regardless of whether Donald Trump or another Republican wins in November. “Mike understands that ideas outlast elections,” said Heritage board chair Thomas Saunders, in what some interpreted as a subtle distancing from Trump’s volatile style.