Presidential candidate and former vice president Mike Pence busted out an impression of the 43rd president during a campaign stop in Indiana on Wednesday.
"Mike, I just want you to be encouraged," Pence said in a Southern drawl reminiscent of former president George W. Bush. "I'd like you to see me as an encourager."
Pence spoke Wednesday to a Republican group at the National Conference of State Legislatures summit where he told the story of meeting with Bush in the Oval Office when he was a U.S. congressman.
"I'd like you to leave here with some encouragement," Pence said, in an impression of Bush during the meeting, to the audience's laughs.
Also at the event Pence answered a question on how he will face off against former president Donald Trump, who shared the ticket with Pence in the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections.
"I’ve debated Donald Trump a thousand times," Pence said. "Just not in front of the cameras."
Staffers for Pence said they have been "waiting for this for a while," referring to Pence directly debating Trump on stage. It is unclear whether Trump plans to attend Wednesday's GOP debate in Milwaukee.