Pence leaves door open to testify in Trump election trial

Former Vice President Mike Pence said Sunday that he had "no plans" to testify against his old boss, former President Donald Trump, but would do so if required.

Pence was asked during an interview on CBS News' "Face The Nation" if he would involve himself in the most recent indictment of Trump, who is facing federal charges for allegedly trying to overturn the results of the 2020 election. When CBS's Major Garrett asked if Pence would testify against Trump at trial, Pence replied that he had "challenged in court the scope of any testimony that I could provide ... and I have no plans to testify."

The former vice president argued that, because of his prior position as president of the Senate, "the Constitution provides me with the protections that are afforded to members of Congress." However, Pence added that the American people "can be confident we'll obey the law. We'll respond to the call of the law, if it comes, and we'll just tell the truth," seemingly insinuating that he would testify against Trump if subpoenaed.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Pence has previously argued that his vice presidency precluded him from providing testimony against Trump, after he was subpoenaed earlier this year by the federal grand jury investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. However, a judge eventually ruled that Pence's conversations with Trump were not covered by executive privilege. Pence declined to appeal that ruling, and gave testimony to the grand jury earlier this year.

The former vice president has gone back and forth since leaving office about his feelings on Trump, but has begun using stronger language about his attempts to overturn the election. "Trump was wrong. He was wrong then. He's wrong now," Pence said. "Trump asked me to put him over the Constitution that day, but I chose the Constitution."