Among the recent developments in the ongoing investigation into the efforts by Donald Trump and allies to overturn the election was that people from former vice president Mike Pence’s team speaking with the congressional committee. According to analyst Jeffrey Toobin, Pence’s team may not be happy with the former president, which may explain their cooperation.
Speaking in CNN’s “The Situation Room” Tuesday, Toobin explained why Pence’s staff testifying to the congressional committee probing the riots is important. This comes as Pence’s former chief of staff Marc Short, and former legal counsel Greg Jacobs were revealed to have testified before the panel for hours. Toobin said that contrary to the former vice president staying a loyal supporter of Trump, his staff may not feel the same way, which would explain their cooperation with the committee.
“The interesting political part of this is that even though former vice president Pence is publicly loyal to the former president, his staff doesn’t seem as happy with Donald Trump, and they are telling what they know, unlike people closest to Trump,” said Toobin.
Pence was among the politicians being targeted by the pro-Trump mob during the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol, with the mob calling to have the then-vice president hanged. Later reports revealed that Trump and his allies engaged in a pressure campaign to get Pence to overturn the 2020 election results and stay in power. Pence ultimately refused, drawing the ire of Trump, who still peddled election fraud claims as the reason for his defeat.
Following the Supreme Court ruling allowing the National Archives to turn over related documents to the congressional committee, CNN’s Katelyn Polantz reports that the archives is also turning over records from Pence to the panel. The National Archives released a letter stating that they are set to turn over the records in 30 days regardless of the former president’s protests.
“After consultation with the Counsel to the President and the Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel, and as instructed by President Biden, I have determined to disclose to the House Select Committee to Investigate the Jan. 6 Attack on the United States Capitol the Vice Presidential Records from Dec. 8, 2020, Notification that you identified as privileged in your letter of Jan. 18, 2022,” said the letter.