The walls appear to be closing in on twice-impeached former President Donald Trump even more. Last week, former Vice President Mike Pence said he would give “due consideration” to any formal invitation to testify before the House select committee that is currently investigating the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol. The politician, 63, also hinted at potential executive privilege issues, CNN reports.
During a Q&A event after a speech at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics’ “Politics & Eggs” breakfast, Pence said, “If there was an invitation to participate, I would consider it,”after dubbing January 6 a tragic day for all Americans. “But, you heard me mention the Constitution a few times this morning. Under the Constitution, we have three co-equal branches of government, and any invitation to be directed to me, I would have to reflect on the unique role I was serving in as vice president.”
Former VP Mike Pence said he would give any formal invitation to testify before the Jan. 6 committee “due consideration,” while hinting at potential executive privilege issues.
Watch the moment here: https://t.co/BsGlNXcMPR
— CNN (@CNN) August 17, 2022
He went on, “It would be unprecedented in history for a vice president to be summoned to testify on Capitol Hill. But, as I said, I don’t want to pre-judge, so if there’s ever any formal invitation rendered to us, we would give it due consideration.”
Although Pence deemed it “unprecedented” for a VP to ever be asked to testify on Capitol Hill, presidents and VPs have notably testified before Congress in the past, CNN writes, including President Gerald Ford, who testified voluntarily in front of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Criminal Justice in 1974. This was done to explain why he pardoned his predecessor, Richard Nixon.
Mike Pence on Jan. 6 Comm: “While I’m disappointed with the partisan nature of the committee, if a formal invitation were presented to us we will first review my unique role as Vice President of the US…but if they submit a formal application…we’ll give it due consideration.” pic.twitter.com/1hGHaPbJ84
— Amanda Rooker KCCI (@ARookerKCCI) August 19, 2022
Back in June, the select committee detailed and revealed at a public hearing the ways that Trump, 76, attempted to pressure Pence, his vice president, to join his plans to overturn the 2020 presidential election. Another notable takeaway from the hearing was how Pence’s refusal even put his life in danger as violent rioters and insurrectionists went as far as calling for his hanging on January 6, 2021.
The committee also discussed how conservative Trump attorney John Eastman promoted a legal theory that Pence could somehow unilaterally block certification of the election. While this theory was adamantly rejected by Trump’s White House attorneys and Pence’s team, it, of course, was embraced by Trump.
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At the same Q&A last week, Pence also reiterated a call for US Attorney General Merrick Garland to give a full accounting of reasons why he found the recent search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence to be necessary. Pence cited the politicization of the FBI during the Trump administration and dubbed the search "unprecedented."
“This unprecedented action does demand unprecedented transparency,” Pence said. “I just want to remind my fellow Republicans, we can hold the AG accountable for the decision he made without attacking rank-and-file law enforcement personnel at the FBI. The Republican Party is the party of law and order. Our party stands with the men and women who serve on the thin blue line at the federal and state and local level, and these attacks on the FBI must stop. Calls to defund the FBI are just as wrong as calls to defund the police.”
