Former Vice President Mike Pence would not commit to cooperating with the congressional investigation into the deadly Jan. 6 riots at the US Capitol but said Wednesday he would “evaluate” any requests from the House’s select committee.
Pence, 62, made the statement to Fox News during a day trip to New Hampshire, where he glad-handed Republican voters in the early presidential primary state and raised speculation that he would run for the top job in 2024.
“We’ll evaluate any of those requests as they come,” the ex-veep reportedly said.
Pence ignored repeated requests from former President Donald Trump to not certify the 2020 election results on Jan. 6 amid Trump’s false claims of voter fraud.
A mob of extremists breached the building with some chanting his name. Pence has since been a target of resentment from the former president and his loyalists.
The House committee launched by the chamber’s Democratic majority is investigating the cause of the riot and recommending preventative measures to halt another mutinous attack.
Trump was impeached by the legislative body on a charge that he incited the riot but was acquitted in the Senate earlier this year after leaving office.
“Jan. 6 was a tragic day in the life of our nation’s capital. But thanks to the efforts of law enforcement that day, we quelled the riot and reconvened the Congress, and we completed our work,” Pence reportedly said while meeting voters at a Bedford, NH bakery.
“They’ve begun an investigation, and I can tell you that going forward, we’ll do our part to make sure the American people understand the issues on that day, which for me ultimately come down to what the Constitution required,” Pence told the outlet when asked if he’d participate in the inquiry.
“For my part, I know we did our duty, opening and counting the votes,” he reportedly said, adding, “in the days ahead the American people are going to get the answers they need and understand what took place that day, and I hope they’ll see more and more that the work we did that day is consistent with our Constitution and our laws.”
Pence’s remarks came after two days after his former chief of staff Marc Short said he would cooperate with the congressional probe after receiving a subpoena. Trump banned Short from the White House in January for objecting to his boss being pressured to reject President Joe Biden’s victory.
Former Pence press secretary Alyssa Farah, who had left her job before the riot, had already voluntarily met with Republicans on the committee to provide information.
The panel had also subpoenaed Keith Kellogg, Pence’s national security adviser, writing that he may “have direct information about the former president’s statements about, and reactions to, the Capitol insurrection.”
More than 250 witnesses have already spoken to the panel, lawmakers said last week.
Pence, a former Indiana governor and congressman, reportedly deflected on his presidential ambitions as he toured The Granite State, meeting with the New Hampshire Federation of Republican Women, speaking with a home builders association and keynoting a fundraiser for GOP state senators.
“I’m completely focused on 2022. And come 2023, we’ll do as our family has always done. We’ll reflect and pray and consider where we might next serve.”
Trump, 75, meanwhile, continued to flirt with a bid for a second, non-consecutive presidential term against Biden, 79, in a string of messages to supporters.
With Post wires
