Former Vice President Mike Pence will testify under oath as part of the Department of Justice investigation into Donald Trump’s actions leading up to the Capitol insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021.
Last month, a judge ordered Pence to testify to a federal grand jury. The former veep will not fight the order and will appear before the panel to answer questions about Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election. The former president is appealing the decision, but is expected to lose..
Appearing on Monday’s edition of The Lead, former White House Deputy Press Secretary Sarah Matthews explained what she would ask Pence.
“If you could ask Vice President Pence anything under oath about that day – assuming that he was willing to participate and tell you – what would you want to know?” asked Jake Tapper.
“I think it’s gonna be really important for them to ask the vice president what the president’s mindset was leading up to Jan 6,” Matthews answered. “What was his goal with the ‘Stop the Steal’ rally? And, where his mindset was in terms of whether he had thought he actually won or lost the election. And so, I’m curious if he had conversations on that and it’ll be interesting to see them shed light on that with his testimony.”
Shortly before the Capitol riot where Trump supporters sought to stop the certification of the 2020 presidential election in Congress, Trump held a “Stop the Steal” rally nearby in Washington, D.C. There, he repeated his false claims about widespread voter fraud in the election and whipped the crowd into a frenzy. During his remarks, he called on Pence to refuse to certify the results as the presiding officer over the largely ceremonial proceeding.
