As we all know by now, when the pro-Trump hordes poured into the Capitol last January, they were out for then-Vice President Mike Pence’s head. Whipped into a frenzy by Trump himself, who was outraged that Pence wouldn’t help him steal a second term, a bunch of these “patriots” were heard chanting, “Hang Mike Pence!”
Indeed, circumstantial evidence indicates that when Trump attacked Pence on Twitter for not “having the courage” to declare that Trump had won, he was aware that Pence had been whisked out of the Senate Chamber. Indeed, as recently as this weekend, Trump was railing that Pence had the power to overturn Joe Biden’s win.
Well, the anger that Trump and Trumpworld feel at Pence may have been ramped up again. CNN reported late Monday that Pence’s former chief of staff, Marc Short, testified before the Jan. 6 committee last week.
Short was on hand with his boss at the Capitol on Jan. 6. Almost as crucially, two days earlier he was with Pence when Trump and conservative legal scholar John Eastman tried to convince Pence that he could unilaterally overturn the Electoral College results when Congress met to count the votes. It’s probably why his testimony was much anticipated. From CNN:
Short testified before the select committee in person last Wednesday in a lengthy session, according to a source familiar with the matter. Short had previously supplied a limited number of documents that were subpoenaed by the committee, according to one source, including a memo from Trump aide Johnny McEntee comparing Trump to Thomas Jefferson. It's also customary that witnesses hand over more documents when they testify, according to another source familiar with the matter.
Short and his lawyer, Emmet Flood, had been in talks with the committee for some time about his testimony. According to CNN, Short’s decision to testify is “the most significant sign to date that Pence's team is cooperating with the probe” into that day’s horror. It comes on the heels of Pence’s national security adviser, Keith Kellogg, also testifying before the committee.
The committee is trying to find out exactly how Trump tried to push Pence into throwing out the votes in states narrowly carried by Biden. Committee chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson went as far as to tell NPR that he was hoping Pence would testify before January was out. Despite this, according to CNN, Pence prefers to have Short and other aides act as his “proxies.” Pence is reportedly mulling a run for president in 2024, and believes he needs in order to stay in the good graces of Trump and his base if any potential bid has any hope of going anywhere.
However, knowing what we know about Trump, the fact that anyone close to Pence is cooperating at all is likely to make his head explode.