Former Vice President Mike Pence inaccurately quoted part of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.‘s famous 1963 “I Have a Dream” speech after being confronted on Sunday about affirmative action, which the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled unconstitutional in a 6-3 decision.
The Court ruled against using race as a factor in college admissions in private and public universities on Thursday. The decision on affirmative action was related to two cases centered on Harvard University and the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, which were brought forward by the conservative nonprofit organization, Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA).
Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in the opinion issued on Thursday that the universities’ policies violate the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.
On Sunday, Jonathan Karl, host of ABC News’ This Week, confronted Pence who is running in the 2024 presidential election about the ruling, which the former vice president supports.
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“If the end result is that America’s most selective colleges and universities have fewer Black and Hispanic students, is that a problem for America?” Karl asked Pence.
Pence then responded: “I really believe that the decision by the Supreme Court today was an acknowledgement of the incredible progress that minority Americans have made, their extraordinary educational achievements, and I have every confidence that African Americans and other minority Americans are going to continue to compete and succeed in universities around the country, but we’re going to do it with a colorblind society that I think is the aspiration of every American.”
Karl asked Pence the same question again, pressing him to weigh in on the consequences that might affect people of color seeking a college education due to the Court’s ruling.
The former vice president, who worked as an admissions counselor at Hanover College where he graduated, reiterated his confidence in the “achievements of African Americans” and said that they, Hispanic Americans, and other minorities will “compete and succeed.”
Pence, who served during the Trump administration, then misquoted Dr. King Jr.’s speech as he continued to comment about the Supreme Court’s decision.
“But we’re going to be able to do it with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision in place, that we’ll be judged not by the content—or judged by—not by the color of our skin, but by the content of our character and by our own academic performance,” Pence said.
However, Dr. King Jr.’s quote from his speech originally read: “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.”
Newsweek reached out to Pence’s campaign for comment via email.
