Pence: Trump Showed 'Big Heart' in Speech

President Donald Trump struck a new note for many Americans with his first address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday with his message of unity, but Vice President Mike Pence said Wednesday morning the address reflected the president with "broad shoulders and a big heart" that he serves with every day.

"[He was] reaching out, focusing on the future," Pence told MSNBC's "Morning Joe." "To see him get the reception that he got, not only in the chamber but also all over the country as of this morning, it gives me great confidence that the agenda that the president articulated last night is the right agenda for America."

The agenda, he continued, is "resonating with the American people, and I couldn't be more optimistic about the opportunity to move forward, our agenda, to repeal and replace Obamacare, and trade deals, and infrastructure, and rebuilding our military."

Pence said Trump was rewriting the speech Tuesday afternoon before he gave it, and show co-host Willie Geist reported hearing Trump was still drafting the speech up until just before he gave it.

Pence said one of the great moments of the speech was when Trump, at the outset, acknowledged the great division on policies that is happening, while reminding Americans there are "things that unite us in this country, in the way we condemn acts of hatred and referring to the terrible acts of anti-Semitism. It was a wonderful moment of unity, and I think it spoke about the heart of this man."

He also reminded the show Trump won 30 out of 50 states, including hundreds of counties former President Barack Obama had won twice because the "American people heard his heart."

Pence, though, did say the Trump administration will continue to call out the media "when they play fast and loose with the facts."

"It's pretty strong terminology [Trump uses]," show co-host Mika Brzezinski said.

"I think you see some of the baseless and fabricated stories come out and it's frustrating," Pence responded. "One of the reasons why president Donald Trump was elected is because he is a fighter.

"The American people want a president who will fight for their future, who will fight for American jobs, fight to make America strong in the world again, but he also willing to make his case and to challenge his detractors when unfair criticisms come his way."

Pence, who booked appearances on most of the early morning news shows, stayed off of CNN, the network that has come under fire the most from the administration.

However, according to CNN's early morning tipsheet, the vice president was to make appearances on MSNBC, NBC, ABC, CBS, and Fox News, along with appearances on the Rush Limbaugh, Laura Ingraham, Michael Savage, and Sean Hannity's radio shows. He also had booked appearances for "The O'Reilly Factor" on Fox News and "For the Record with Greta" on MSNBC.

One of Trump's main points Tuesday concerned Obamacare, and Wednesday, Pence said Trump had made the case the Affordable Care Act is a "failed policy" that needs to be repealed.

"But also you saw him do what great presidents do, and that is he laid out the principles and the framework for replacing Obamacare, one item after another," Pence said.

The vice president told ABC News' "Good Morning America," Wednesday morning nobody will "fall through the cracks" when Republicans repeal and replace the healthcare law, and the repeal measure will be the No. 1 priority of Congress.

"I think the president's made it clear to Congress that particularly when it comes to the most vulnerable population . . . the Medicaid population, we don't want anyone to fall through the cracks," Pence said.

"You heard him mention tax credits last night. What the president wants the Congress to do is to create a framework for people to be able to afford coverage."

Trump also spoke of creating a national marketplace that will allow Americans to buy health insurance across state lines, Pence said, and the focus is on "lowering the cost of health insurance rather than mandating that people buy government-approved health insurance."