Mike Pence insists Donald Trump directed him to ignore the Constitution by blocking the certification of the January 2021 election results after the ex-president pushed back on the claims this week.
The former vice president said he had to “check his tweets” and it would prove Trump was trying to get Pence to go against his constitutional responsibilities – he also said it’s true he was told he was “too honest” is.
Pence said he is “hopeful” that special counsel David Weiss, who has just been assigned to the Hunter Biden case, will perform his duties fairly as Republicans continue to criticize the Justice Department for biased investigations.
The former vice president had a bit of a rough time at the Iowa State Fair this week as he was met by hecklers and fairgoers calling him a “traitor.” But beyond that, the 2024 hopeful and his wife and former Second Lady Karen Pence were one of the bigger names to grace the fair this year, gaining quite a following at the fairgrounds.
Former Vice President Mike Pence said on Sunday morning that Donald Trump’s tweets of Jan. 6, 2021 prove he was pushing for him to flout the Constitution by blocking election certification
Mike Pence and wife Karen visited the Iowa State Fair on Thursday. The former VP met with some hecklers and those who called him a “traitor” for overseeing Congressional certification of the 2020 election results
Donald Trump said this week that he never asked you to ignore the Constitution and that he never said you were being too honest. Is any of those things true?’ asked NBC News host Chuck Todd during a Meet the Press interview on Sunday morning.
“Well, look, you could check his tweets,” Pence replied. “I mean, the president was very clear and quite open that he thought I had the authority to withhold votes or return them to the state.”
According to a third indictment released earlier this month by special counsel Jack Smith, Trump told Pence “you’re being too honest” when he said he didn’t have the power to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
The 45-page federal indictment reveals new details, including that Trump boasted that he had “won every state” amid his attempts to reverse Biden’s victory.
“Bottom line – won every state by 100,000 votes,” Trump said, according to Pence’s contemporaneous notes, which he turned over to federal prosecutors.
While Pence dodged questions on Sunday morning about whether he is a so-called “MAGA Republican,” he agreed that Trump is being treated unfairly by President Joe Biden’s Justice Department.
“I’m running for president because I think this country is in big trouble,” he told Todd. “I think Joe Biden has weakened America at home and abroad. But frankly, the pattern of the Justice Department during our four years in the White House and beyond has undermined public confidence in equal treatment under the law.”
He said special counsel is needed for the investigation into Hunter Biden’s shady foreign business deals, but fears it won’t be conducted fairly by the Democrat-led Department of Justice (DOJ).
“While I welcome the appointment of a special counsel,” he added, “I am also reassured that Congress will continue to do its job.”
“The American people have a right to know whether or not President Biden’s family benefited or whether he himself benefited when he held the job I held as Vice President of the United States on a financial way of foreigners.’
Former President Donald Trump also visited the Iowa State Fair on Saturday and faced a barrage of supporters following him across the fairgrounds
Trump claimed he didn’t call Pence “too honest” for fulfilling his constitutional duties — allegations included in the third and final indictment against the former president
Pence concluded, “I hope that Special Counsel Weiss will do his job without fear or favour, but I have every confidence that Jim Jordan, Congressman Comer, and others will continue to do their jobs for the American people.”
The DOJ scrapped the final agreement with Hunter after negotiations between prosecutors and attorneys for the president’s son failed again. It means Hunter could likely face criminal trial on charges he hoped would be resolved with a “sweetie” plea deal.
Furious Republicans claimed the appointment of Special Counsel Weiss to oversee the investigation was an attempt to thwart their own investigation into the Biden family’s shady business dealings.
Attorney General Merrick Garland made the shocking announcement at a news conference Friday in a sign that the walls on the president’s son are closing in.
The appointment is a move by Garland to undermine claims by Republicans and IRS whistleblowers that U.S. attorney David Weiss lacks full authority and is directed by the Biden administration.