New Delhi: Former US vice president Mike Pence has received a subpoena by a special counsel formed to overlook investigations into efforts by former President Donald Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
Special counsel Jack Smith has sent the subpoena to Pence as part of the investigation in recent days, reported news agency The Associated Press citing its source.
The unusual scenario in which a former vice president is likely to testify against his ex-president in a criminal investigation comes while Pence intends to run a 2024 Republican presidential bid against Trump. The two leaders are said to have been distant since the US Capitol building attack wherein Trump supporters on January 6, 2021, tried to stop Democrat Joe Biden from taking over the presidency.
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The subpoena is seen as an aggressive move from a prosecutor who has led the Justice Department’s public corruption section and also overlooked indictments against major political figures. The subpoena may trigger an executive privilege fight, given Pence’s close association with Trump for four years as major decisions were being contemplated and planned.
Pence remained one of the central figures in Trump’s efforts to stay in power after losing the 2020 election. At that time, Trump falsely claimed that his vice president, who held a ceremonial role in overseeing the certification of the election, could also reject the results and send them back to the battleground states he contested.
On January 6, Trump supporters who were instigated by the lie that the election was rigged marched to the Capitol building and broke through the windows and doors while Pence was presiding over the certification of Biden’s victory. The vice president was steered to safety with his staff and family as some in the mob chanted, “Hang Mike Pence!”