Pence hints at willingness to testify against Trump
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Former Vice President and Indiana Gov. Mike Pence on Wednesday implied he might testify against his former boss at trial if called upon.
The Republican presidential candidate’s remarks came following a speech on inflation at the Indiana State Fair, his first major public event since the indictment against former President Donald Trump in his efforts to overturn the 2020 election became public.
Pence said he had hoped the probe into the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol wouldn’t come to criminal charges.
“I can’t assess whether or not the government has the evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt what they assert in the indictment and the president is entitled to a presumption of innocence,” he said.
The indictment document includes nearly eight pages detailing the pressure Trump and his lawyers put on Pence to overturn the election results.
Detailing a Jan. 4 Oval Office meeting, Special Counsel Jack Smith wrote:
When the Vice President challenged Co-Conspirator 2 on whether the proposal to return the question to the states was defensible, Co-Conspirator 2 responded, “Well, nobody’s tested it before.” The Vice President then told the Defendant, “Did you hear that? Even your own counsel is not saying I have that authority.
Special Counsel Jack Smith
Pence has made that refusal to do Trump’s bidding a key part of his campaign, going so far as to say Trump should never be president again, a talking point he again referred to on Wednesday.
He called Trump’s assertions during and following the transition period that Pence had the authority to unilaterally overturn the election results “completely false.”
When News 8 asked Pence if he would be willing to testify in a criminal trial of his former boss stemming from the indictment, Pence appeared to suggest he might.
“I testified under a subpoena before the grand jury. I’m somebody that believes in the rule of law. But, look, I have nothing to hide,” he said. “I have written and spoken more extensively, maybe, than any other American about this topic. And I don’t want to prejudge how that case may unfold.”
Trump is scheduled to appear before a magistrate judge in the District of Columbia on Thursday.