Donald Trump suddenly has a Mike Pence problem
Just as Republican talking points are shriveling up and people find themselves inevitably forced to face the full implications of what Republican control of Congress in January could mean, we’re about to have yet another round of hearings from the January 6 Committee – and they could include another high profile witness – Mike Pence. Thinking of the former vice president today, it’s pretty much impossible to not remember how the guy who was always Donald Trump’s loyal foot soldier managed to enrage MAGA-World by simply carrying out the formality of certifying the 2020 election, leading to insurrectionists baying for his blood.
Despite this incident, Pence has been doing what he can to avoid publicly rebuking the former guy – only doing it in passive-aggressive ways that also stoke media speculation about what he actually said or didn’t, while not doing much to redeem himself in the eyes of Republican voters. That has changed a bit – as he defended the FBI for acting lawfully when it came to the search of Mar-A-Lago for stolen classified documents and now his lawyers are currently in talks with the Jan 6 Committee about Pence being called in to testify next month.
If this happens, remember that Pence is no hero – nothing prevented him since July from voluntarily talking to the committee. The end goal here is taking down the former guy and keeping him from ever being allowed to hold elected office again, so if Pence does agree, it will be because he’s decided to save himself – to run for president, he needs to do what he can to get the former guy out of the picture.
James Sullivan is the assistant editor of Brain World Magazine and an advocate of science-based policy making