The January 6th committee wants to talk to at least five members of Vice President Mike Pence 's inner circle. CNN reported Wednesd...
The January 6th committee wants to talk to at least five members of Vice President Mike Pence's inner circle.
CNN reported Wednesday evening that those close to Pence may be willing to talk voluntarily or with the push of a 'friendly subpoena,' to provide information on how former President Donald Trump pressured his VP to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
Sources told CNN that Pence aides have been more forthcoming with information than was previously reported.
The January 6th committee wants to talk to at least five members of Vice President Mike Pence's inner circle. Pence is photographed certifying the results of the election after the Capitol attack on January 6, 2021
Pence is seen being evacuated from the Capitol Building on January 6th. Video of the vice president being rushed out was shared during Trump's Senate impeachment trial in February
On Tuesday, Pence's national security adviser Keith Kellogg was subpoenaed alongside former White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany and Trump senior adviser Stephen Miller.
Kellogg's testimony was requested because he reportedly participated in a January 2021 meeting with Trump and White House Counsel Pat Cipollone in which the now ex-president pushed Pence not to certify the election.
On January 6, the vice president chairs the joint session of Congress where the electoral college votes are counted.
Kellogg was at the White House on January 6, Congressional investigators said, and watched the president's reaction to the Capitol attack.
He met with Trump before the president's appearance at the 'stop the steal' rally and then afterward he encouraged Trump to send out a tweet to supporters to help control the crowd.
CNN reported that other Pence staffers that committee is interested in include Pence's former chiefs of staff Marc Short and Nick Ayers, chief counsel Greg Jacob, legislative affairs director Chris Hodgson, political adviser Marty Obst and special assistant Zach Bauer.
Keith Kellogg (right), seen shaking hands with the former president at Mar-a-Lago in 2017, served as Pence's national security adviser and was subpoenaed by the January 6th committee on Tuesday
CNN reported that the January 6th committee is interested in hearing from Greg Jacob (pictured), Pence's former chief counsel, who received an email from Trump's lawyer John Eastman during the Capitol attack blaming Pence's inaction for the violence
Alyssa Farah, who was promoted to White House communications director, but had also been Pence's press secretary, voluntarily met with Republicans serving on the committee, CNN previously reported.
Obst told CNN he hadn't had 'any contact with the January 6th committee to this point and no one has reached out to me.'
Chairman Bennie Thompson told CNN last week that the January 6 committee has been in the process of reaching out to the former vice president's associates - but not all have agreed to speak to lawmakers.
'Well, yes and no,' Thompson said. 'I don't want to just say yes, when there have been some people who clearly have said no. So we've had, you know, people on both sides.'
The committee is interested in speaking to Jacob, CNN said, because he countered efforts - including by fringe legal scholar John Eastman - to have Pence overturn the results of the election.
Pence's Chief of Staff Marc Short (left) is among the people in the ex-VP's inner circle that the January 6th committee would like to speak to
Nick Ayers (right), who also served as Pence's chief of staff, was also among those CNN said the January 6th committee is interested in speaking with
The Washington Post reported that Eastman had emailed Jacob during the Capitol attack, saying Pence's inaction caused the violence.
'The "siege" is because YOU and your boss did not do what was necessary to allow this to be aired in a public way so that the American people can see for themselves what happened,' Eastman wrote to Jacob.
Afterward, Jacob had drafted an op-ed about Trump's outside legal team, which included Eastman, but never had it published.
The Washington Post obtained a copy.
Jacob wrote that by sending the email Eastman 'displayed a shocking lack of awareness of how those practical implications were playing out in real time.'
Pence was hiding from the MAGA mob when the email came in - as some were chanting that he should be hung.
Eastman has been subpoenaed by the committee.
Pence's political moves signal he's still interested in a presidential run in 2024, which means his inner circle can't look too engaged with the January 6th committee, which is comprised of Democrats and two Republicans who backed Trump's second impeachments - Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger.
Last week at an event in Iowa, Pence both affirmed the 2020 election had been won by President Joe Biden, but also brought up election 'irregularities' and said he was supportive of his party's efforts to 'improve voter integrity.'
Pence told a crowd of college students it was 'James Madison' who told him to go ahead and certify Biden's election win.
Pence appeared at a Young America's Foundation event at the University of Iowa and firled a question from an audience member who suggested the then vice president had been ready to toss the results out - until someone at the White House got to him.
'On January 5th, you were convinced that the election was correctly stolen,' a young man named Jared said. 'You, Trump, Peter Navarro, John Eastman, and others had a plan on the morning of the 6th to send the certification back to the states.'
'On the night of the 5th or the morning of the 6th, someone in the White House convinced you that it would destroy your hopes of becoming president if you sent it back to the states,' the young man continued. 'My question is what is the name of the person who told you to buck President Trump's plan and certify the votes?'
Pence gave the name of the father of the Constitution, Madison and received applause from the audience.
'Virtually everything you recited relative to me is false,' Pence also said.
He recieved more applause.
'Look I said earlier, Psalm 15 says he who keeps his oath even when it hurts,' he continued.
'You know on that day in January I wrote a letter to Congress I recommend everyone here read,' Pence said. 'I expressed my concern about irregularities that took place in the election in a number of states. And I continue to share those concerns, and I support efforts in states to improve voter integrity as has been done in Georgia and Arizona and elsewhere.'
Pence said the Constitution makes 'very clear' that elections are to be governed at the state level.
'The founders actually made that decision at the Constitutional Convention. And the only role of the federal government was to open and count the electoral votes that were sent by the states,' Pence explained to the crowd.
By the time Pence presided over Congress on January 6th - the day of the Capitol attack - every state had certified its count.
'Now, I understand the disappointment in the election,' he added. 'You might remember I was on the ballot.'
'And the time may come that some of you are in that position, or one like it, and I just have a feeling based on the shining faces I'm seeing around here that you're going to do your duty in that time as well,' he told the young audience members.
He also thanked them for showing support - as Pence has been booed at previous engagements for his role in certifying Biden's win.
'And I appreciate your affirmations of support tonight, it means a lot to me, it truly does, thank you,' Pence said.
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