‘If Mike Pence Wants To Make a Difference for All of American History,’ He Should Talk to Prosecutors
Pence condemned Trump for January 6 but to some the effort rang hollow
Former vice president Mike Pence is being roundly criticized for talking tough about his one-time boss at limited venues like this weekend's Gridiron dinner in Washington while ducking requests to do the same with prosecutors and other investigators.
Pence surprised by offering his strongest language yet at Saturday evening's annual Gridiron Club Dinner.
Pence rebuked Donald Trump for his role in the January 6, 2021 attack, saying he was “wrong” for claiming Pence had the authority to overturn the results of the 2020 election in his role presiding over Congress that day, saying “history will hold Donald Trump accountable.”
Pence also chastised fellow Republicans who minimized the insurrection, days after Fox News host Tucker Carlson aired new security footage from inside the Capitol on January 6 in an attempt to defend the mob.
However, if Pence was serious about holding his ex-boss accountable, the former vice president would drop his objections about cooperating with prosecutors and other authorities, according to observers and others across the political spectrum.
Despite subpoenas and other entreaties to cooperate, Pence has been blocking those requests.
“If Mike Pence wants to make a difference for all of American history his voice is not to go to the Gridiron Club, is to go to Congress, is to go to prosecutors, and tell them what he knows about the former president's involvement,” said former Republican congressman David Jolly, of Florida. “There is nobody that could draw a line quicker to an indictment of Donald Trump than Mike Pence.”
MSNBC host Joy Reid also found Pence's effort at the Saturday dinner to ring hollow.
“But saying history will hold Trump accountable is kind of a weird take, given that that only happens through the justice system, and pence is currently refusing to testify in the [Justice Department] probe into January 6 and vowing to fight their subpoena so accountable, how?” she asked. “But as we now know, pence is not alone in talking one way about Trump in public and another way behind closed doors.”
Pence might as well as well testify not only because it's the right thing to do but because there's no way Pence could ever be elected president now in a MAGA-dominated Republican Party, said political commentator Charlie Sykes.
“Yes, and so he is sort of trapped in this loop the fact is, it’s one thing to speak out at the gridiron dinner, but he needs to testify,” said Sykes, editor-in-chief of the website The Bulwark. “He needed to have testified to the January 6 committee. He needs to stop fighting the subpoena also, he needs to recognize that the fact that he is willing to say what he has said is the reason he is never going to be the Republican nominee, because that is disqualifying.
“That tells you a lot about the Republican Party [that the] former vice president will never be president because he dares to call out the president for his attempted coup,” Sykes added.
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