Former Vice President Mike Pence’s chief of staff says former President Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election were “wrong,” but he refused to say whether he deserved a criminal indictment over the conduct.
Marc Short, who now leads Pence’s political advocacy group, denounced Trump’s actions but did not endorse the new indictment from special counsel Jack Smith filed Tuesday. He also signaled Pence feels the same.
“These charges are real, and the reality is that Donald Trump did ask his vice president to put Donald Trump above the vice president’s oath to the Constitution,” Short said in a CNN interview Wednesday.
Short said Pence — who is running against Trump in the GOP presidential primary — feels that the former president should not be judged in the judicial system.
“My preference is for the American people to pass judgment on Donald Trump and his actions that day, as opposed to a criminal system that many of us on the right feel is partisan and does have a two-tier system of justice,” Short said, characterizing Pence’s opinion.
After the indictment was filed Tuesday, Pence issued his own statement.
“Today’s indictment serves as an important reminder: anyone who puts himself over the Constitution should never be President of the United States,” Pence said.
“Our country is more important than one man. Our constitution is more important than any one man’s career. On January 6th, former President Trump demanded that I choose between him and the Constitution. I chose the Constitution and I always will,” he added.
The indictment laid out how Trump asked Pence multiple times to accept fraudulent Electoral College votes and overturn the results of the 2020 election, with Pence refusing each time. Trump allegedly once responded, “You’re too honest.”
Short also said that Pence has no additional information to add to any criminal case and is unlikely to be called to testify in any trial.
“He’s a central part of this, sure, but much of what he’s represented is public,” Short said.
Everything Pence has to share is already published in the vice president’s memoir, he added.
Trump was charged alongside six co-conspirators Tuesday, with the charges including conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruction of an official proceeding.
The new indictment is Trump’s third, after a New York state business filings case and a second federal case over alleged mishandling of classified documents after leaving the White House.
A Georgia investigation into Trump’s alleged attempts to overturn the 2020 election in that state is expected to hinge on whether to charge the former president in the coming weeks.
In his statement Tuesday, Pence pledged to restore dignity to the White House if elected.
“As your president, I will not yield an inch in defending America, our people, or our values, and I promise you: I will do so in a way consistent with my oath to the Constitution and the character and decency of the American people,” he wrote.
Pence is placing fourth in recent national polling averages for the GOP primary, with about 4 percent support. Trump overwhelmingly leads the field, with about 53 percent support.