Pence Says He’d ‘Consider’ Testifying Before January 6 Committee
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Former vice president Mike Pence said Wednesday he would “consider” testifying before the January 6 Committee if he was invited.
Pence was answering a question after the New Hampshire Institute of Politics’ “Politics & Eggs” breakfast when he made the remark.
“If there was an invitation to participate, I would consider it,” Pence said. “But, you heard me mention the Constitution a few times this morning. Under the Constitution, we have three co-equal branches of government, and any invitation to be directed to me, I would have to reflect on the unique role I was serving in as vice president. It would be unprecedented in history for a vice president to be summoned to testify on Capitol Hill. But, as I said, I don’t want to pre-judge, so if there’s ever any formal invitation rendered to us, we would give it due consideration.”
Presidents and vice presidents have testified before Congressional committees in the past, including former vice president Schuyler Colfax and former presidents Abraham Lincoln, Gerald Ford, and Woodrow Wilson.
“My first obligation is to continue to hold my oath. To uphold the framework of government enshrined in the Constitution,” Pence added.
The January 6 Committee has not asked Pence to testify, despite Republican Illinois Representative Adam Kinzinger saying in June that he would “love” if Pence did. In July, Kinzinger said lawmakers were still deciding if they wanted to subpoena him.
Pence was also asked his thoughts on the FBI raid on Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence.
Pence recalled calling on Attorney General Merrick Garland to give a “full accounting” for the reasoning behind the raid.
“While he has begun to do so, there’s not nearly enough information that has been provided,” Pence said.
The former vice president also criticized the calls to “defund the FBI” emanating from some quarters of the Republican party.
Arizona Representative Paul Gosar said, “I will support a complete dismantling and elimination of the democrat brown shirts known as the FBI.”
Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia has also called to “defund the corrupt FBI.”
“We can hold the attorney general accountable for the decision that he made without attacking rank and file law enforcement personnel at the FBI. The Republican Party is the party of law and order,” Pence said.
“These attacks on the FBI must stop. Calls to defund the FBI are just as wrong as calls to defund the police,” he added.
