Florida: Former Vice President mike pence directly denied Donald Trumpof false claims that he could have somehow reversed the results of the 2020 election, saying the former president was simply “wrong”.
Addressing a gathering of the Conservative Federalist Society in Florida on Friday, Pence addressed Trump’s intense efforts to advance the false narrative that, as vice president, he had unilateral power to stop the president. Joe Biden from taking office.
“President Trump is wrong,” Pence said. “I had no right to reverse the election.” Pence’s announcement marked his most forceful reaction ever to Trump, who after his presidency fueled the lie that the 2020 campaign was stolen from him. And it comes as Pence begins to lay the groundwork for a potential race for president in 2024, which could put him in direct competition with his former boss, who is also teasing a return race.
Relations between the two men took a new turn this week, with Trump intensifying his attack on Pence.
In a statement Tuesday, Trump said the committee investigating the deadly January 6 attack on the Capitol should investigate “why did Mike Pence not send back votes for re-certification or approval.” And on Sunday, he rebuked Pence, saying “he could have reversed the election!”
The Vice President plays only a ceremonial role in the counting of the Electoral College votes, and any attempt to interfere with the counting would represent an extraordinary violation of the law and an attack on the democratic process.
Pence, in his remarks to the group of lawyers in Lake Buena Vista on Friday, described January 6, 2021 as “a dark day in the history of the United States Capitol” and his actions on that day as a constitutional duty. tailored accordingly. irreversible.
“The American people should know that we will always keep our oath to the Constitution, even if it is politically expedient to do so,” he told the group on Friday. He stated that, under Article II clause one of the Constitution, “elections are held at the state level and not by Congress” and that “the sole role of Congress in relation to the Electoral College is to open and count votes submitted and certified.” . By the states. No more or less.”
He called out those who insisted that it was not so.
“Frankly, there’s no idea more non-American than the notion that any one person can choose a US president,” he said. “Under the Constitution, I had no right to change the result of my election. And Kamala Harris There will be no right to reverse the election when we defeat them in 2024. ,
Viewers applauded Pence’s line about defeating the Democrats in the upcoming presidential election, but kept quiet when Pence previously said “Trump is wrong.” As Pence confronted Trump in Florida, Republican officials gathered in Utah to associate himself even more closely with the former president. The Republican National Committee condemned Representatives Liz Cheney of Wyoming and Adam Kinzinger of Illinois for participating in the committee investigating the January 6 uprising. The GOP also attacked the panel for leading “the oppression of ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate political discourse.”
Pence was inside the Capitol on January 6, presiding over a joint session of Congress to ratify the presidential election, when a crowd of Trump supporters violently broke up, attacking police officers and poaching lawmakers. Pence, who issued a letter moments before the start of the session clarifying that he had no right to overturn the will of voters, called some rioters “Hang up Mike Pence!”
In his remarks Friday, the former vice president acknowledged anger among many in Trump’s base, even as he said it was “time to focus on the future.” He said, “The truth is that there is more at stake than our party or political fortune. Men and women, if we lose faith in the Constitution, we will not just lose the election – we will lose our country.”
Trump aides did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the speech. Trump issued a statement shortly thereafter rebuking the January 6 committee, but made no mention of Pence specifically.
Trump’s growing rhetoric comes as he is under increasing scrutiny from the committee, which has now interviewed hundreds of witnesses, issued dozens of subpoenas and obtained information about government documents Trump tried to hide.
It also comes as a bipartisan group of lawmakers to update the Electoral Counting Act to eliminate any ambiguity about the role of the vice president.
Pence has so far tried to pin the needle on his actions on January 6, which continues to anger large parts of Trump’s base, creating potential complications if he runs for president in 2024.
Addressing a gathering of the Conservative Federalist Society in Florida on Friday, Pence addressed Trump’s intense efforts to advance the false narrative that, as vice president, he had unilateral power to stop the president. Joe Biden from taking office.
“President Trump is wrong,” Pence said. “I had no right to reverse the election.” Pence’s announcement marked his most forceful reaction ever to Trump, who after his presidency fueled the lie that the 2020 campaign was stolen from him. And it comes as Pence begins to lay the groundwork for a potential race for president in 2024, which could put him in direct competition with his former boss, who is also teasing a return race.
Relations between the two men took a new turn this week, with Trump intensifying his attack on Pence.
In a statement Tuesday, Trump said the committee investigating the deadly January 6 attack on the Capitol should investigate “why did Mike Pence not send back votes for re-certification or approval.” And on Sunday, he rebuked Pence, saying “he could have reversed the election!”
The Vice President plays only a ceremonial role in the counting of the Electoral College votes, and any attempt to interfere with the counting would represent an extraordinary violation of the law and an attack on the democratic process.
Pence, in his remarks to the group of lawyers in Lake Buena Vista on Friday, described January 6, 2021 as “a dark day in the history of the United States Capitol” and his actions on that day as a constitutional duty. tailored accordingly. irreversible.
“The American people should know that we will always keep our oath to the Constitution, even if it is politically expedient to do so,” he told the group on Friday. He stated that, under Article II clause one of the Constitution, “elections are held at the state level and not by Congress” and that “the sole role of Congress in relation to the Electoral College is to open and count votes submitted and certified.” . By the states. No more or less.”
He called out those who insisted that it was not so.
“Frankly, there’s no idea more non-American than the notion that any one person can choose a US president,” he said. “Under the Constitution, I had no right to change the result of my election. And Kamala Harris There will be no right to reverse the election when we defeat them in 2024. ,
Viewers applauded Pence’s line about defeating the Democrats in the upcoming presidential election, but kept quiet when Pence previously said “Trump is wrong.” As Pence confronted Trump in Florida, Republican officials gathered in Utah to associate himself even more closely with the former president. The Republican National Committee condemned Representatives Liz Cheney of Wyoming and Adam Kinzinger of Illinois for participating in the committee investigating the January 6 uprising. The GOP also attacked the panel for leading “the oppression of ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate political discourse.”
Pence was inside the Capitol on January 6, presiding over a joint session of Congress to ratify the presidential election, when a crowd of Trump supporters violently broke up, attacking police officers and poaching lawmakers. Pence, who issued a letter moments before the start of the session clarifying that he had no right to overturn the will of voters, called some rioters “Hang up Mike Pence!”
In his remarks Friday, the former vice president acknowledged anger among many in Trump’s base, even as he said it was “time to focus on the future.” He said, “The truth is that there is more at stake than our party or political fortune. Men and women, if we lose faith in the Constitution, we will not just lose the election – we will lose our country.”
Trump aides did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the speech. Trump issued a statement shortly thereafter rebuking the January 6 committee, but made no mention of Pence specifically.
Trump’s growing rhetoric comes as he is under increasing scrutiny from the committee, which has now interviewed hundreds of witnesses, issued dozens of subpoenas and obtained information about government documents Trump tried to hide.
It also comes as a bipartisan group of lawmakers to update the Electoral Counting Act to eliminate any ambiguity about the role of the vice president.
Pence has so far tried to pin the needle on his actions on January 6, which continues to anger large parts of Trump’s base, creating potential complications if he runs for president in 2024.
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