The pressure goes up a notch. Former US Vice President Mike Pence has been subpoenaed to testify by the special prosecutor in charge of investigating Donald Trump and in particular his exact role in the assault on the Capitol by his supporters on January 6, 2021, several media reported Thursday.
This subpoena was decided after “months of negotiations between federal prosecutors and Mr. Pence’s legal team,” ABC said.
His testimony could help shed light on the extent of the real estate mogul’s efforts to prevent the certification of his Democratic rival Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential victory.
Public pressure
Donald Trump had indeed publicly pressured Mike Pence not to certify the results of the election on January 6, 2021, when he was on Capitol Hill besieged by supporters of the former Republican president.
Acts denounced as “irresponsible” by Mike Pence, potential presidential candidate for 2024, who nevertheless refused to be heard by the House of Representatives commission of inquiry into the attack on the Capitol.
Second inquiry into confidential documents
In addition to this investigation, Special Prosecutor Jack Smith, appointed in November by the US Minister of Justice, is overseeing a second investigation into the management by the ex-president of confidential documents supposed to be archived after his departure from the White House.
Donald Trump, who has already announced his candidacy for the 2024 presidential election, could try to prevent the testimony of his former vice president by wielding an executive power prerogative to keep his communications confidential, as he has tried to do along with other officials named to testify in the federal investigation.
The special prosecutor will have to decide whether or not to recommend the indictment of the Republican billionaire, and it will be up to the Minister of Justice to decide.