Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
ABC News
ABC News
National
Shiloh Payne with Wires

Will Mike Pence be summonsed to testify before January 6 committee?

Former US vice-president Mike Pence says he will consider testifying before the committee investigating the January 6 Capitol riots if he receives an invitation to attend.

The January 6 committee is investigating former Us president Donald Trump’s involvement in the Capitol riot, they have already held seven hearings and will be back for more in September.

Mr Pence says it would be "unprecedented" for a vice-president to be summonsed to testify on Capitol Hill, but he would consider the invitation.

But what has the committee uncovered about Mike Pence so far and will he be summonsed?

What did he say about testifying?

On Thursday, Mr Pence told people gathered for a "Politics & Eggs" breakfast in New Hampshire that he would consider testifying before the committee.

"If there was an invitation to participate, I would consider it," Mr Pence said.

"Any invitation to be directed to me, I would have to reflect on the unique role that I was serving in as vice-president. It would be unprecedented in history for a vice-president to be summonsed to testify on Capitol Hill."

Mr Pence said he did not want to prejudge if there would be a formal invitation delivered to him.

"But my first obligation is to continue to uphold my oath, continue to uphold the framework of government enshrined in the constitution that has created the greatest nation in the history of the world — and we'll do that."

Will he be summonsed?

Committee members, so far, have not decided to seek Mr Pence's testimony, saying that other testimonies have provided investigators with plenty of evidence.

However, additional hearings are set to start in September, so there is a chance they could extend an invitation at that time.

Two of Mr Pence's top aides have already testified, at length, providing their own accounts of Mr Trump's attempts to overturn the election.

Mr Pence's former chief of staff, Marc Short, agreed to testify in private in December after receiving a subpoena.

Marc Short was at the Capitol on January 6 and accompanied Mr Pence as he  fled the Senate chamber and hid from rioters who were calling for his hanging. (AP: Alex Brandon/File)

In Mr Short's recorded testimony, he described attending White House meetings before the insurrection where Trump allies discussed ways to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

Court documents also revealed testimony from Greg Jacob, who served as Mr Pence's chief counsel.

In a series of emails, Mr Jacob repeatedly told lawyer John Eastman, who was working with Mr Trump, that Mr Pence couldn't intervene in his ceremonial role and halt the certification of the electoral votes. 

A look at Mike Pence's movements on January 6

Rioters stormed the Capitol just after 2pm on January 6, 2021. (AP: John Minchillo/File)

On the morning of January 6, Mr Pence was at his house when he spoke to Donald Trump on the phone, who berated him for not going along with a scheme to overturn the election.

Mr Pence then headed to the Capitol to oversee the counting of the Electoral College votes that would formalise Mr Trump's defeat.

There, he explained why he couldn't go along with Mr Trump's plan in a letter addressed to his colleagues in Congress.

"It is my considered judgement that my oath to support and defend the Constitution constrains me from claiming unilateral authority to determine which electoral votes should be counted and which should not," he wrote.

At 1:03pm, he officially gavelled the US Senate into session as pro-Trump rioters were outside clashing with police.

DC police officially declared a riot at 1.49pm.

Mr Pence was rushed off the Senate floor as rioters flooded inside the building about 2:12pm

He spent the next hours in hiding, with his staff and family, at first in his ceremonial office and then in an underground loading dock in the Capitol complex.

At least twice, he rejected pleas from security staff to leave the building, insisting it was crucial that he remain in place.

Jan 6 hearing committee examines correspondence among Mike Pence's security detail during Capitol Riot

Threats to his life

In the lead up to the riot, Mr Trump was pushing Mr Pence, both publicly and behind the scenes, to go along with the scheme to overturn the election.

"If Vice President @Mike_Pence comes through for us, we will win the presidency," Mr Trump tweeted around 1am on January 6.

"All Mike Pence has to do is send them back to the ctates, AND WE WIN," he wrote later that morning. Do it Mike, this is a time for extreme courage!"

Donald Trump says he hopes Mike Pence does the 'right thing' to recertify electoral college votes.

During the Trump rally ahead of the insurrection, Mr Trump blasted Mr Pence.

"Mike Pence didn't have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our country and our constitution, giving states a chance to certify a corrected set of facts, not the fraudulent or inaccurate ones which they were asked to previously certify," Mr Trump tweeted at 2:24pm. 

Mr Trump's tweet echoed through the angry mob when they descended on the Capitol.

Footage obtained by the committee shows rioters reading Mr Trump's words aloud and crowds breaking into chants of "Hang Mike Pence!"

ABC/Wires

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.