Pence Told Trump ‘Many Times’ He Couldn’t Overturn Election Results, Staffer Says

Topline

Former President Donald Trump was repeatedly advised before the January 6 riot that a plan for Vice President Mike Pence to somehow block the certification of the 2020 presidential election results was unconstitutional, according to testimony the January 6 committee played at a hearing Thursday, but Trump continued to pressure Pence to overturn the election results.

Key Facts

Marc Short, who served as Pence’s chief of staff, said in a deposition that Pence told Trump “many times” he lacked the power to block Congress from certifying the election results.

John Eastman, a right-wing legal scholar who backed Trump’s false election fraud claims, also informed the president before the January 6 riot that Pence intervening in the certification would violate the Electoral Count Act, according to a deposition from Greg Jacob, Pence’s attorney.

Trump nonetheless publicly urged Pence to act, telling a crowd of supporters that went on to storm the Capitol on January 6 that he would be “very disappointed” in Pence if he didn’t block the certification.

Crucial Quote

“We are fortunate for Mr. Pence’s courage on January 6,” Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), January 6 committee chairman, said in his opening statement at Thursday’s hearing. “Thanks in part to Mike Pence, our democracy withstood Donald Trump’s scheme and the violence of January 6.”

Key Background

Thursday afternoon’s hearing is focused on Trump’s “relentless effort” to get Pence to overturn President Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 election. It is the third hearing from the committee this month—the first focused on the actions of rioters storming the Capitol, while the second was centered on Trump choosing to ignore advisors who told him he had lost the election.