Former Vice President Mike Pence said Thursday that he was “proud” of his participation in the certification of President Joe Biden despite backlash from some Republicans.
“I will always be proud to have played a small part on that tragic day when we reconvened the Congress and fulfilled our duty under the Constitution and the laws of the United States,” Pence said, according to the Los Angeles Times.
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His comments were part of a series of talks held at the Ronald Regan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, C.A. about the future of the Republican party.
Shortly before the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by former President Donald Trump held a rally for his supporters – including some who were in the mob attacking the Capitol – where he expressed his hope that Pence would prevent the certification of votes for Biden. As vice president, Pence did not have authority to prevent certification of the new president.
“Because if Mike Pence does the right thing, we win the election,” Trump told the crowd.
During the Jan. 6 “Stop the Steal” rally, Trump claimed that he had actually won the 2020 election, that states wanted to “revote” and that states were “defrauded” among other unsubstantiated statements. He mentioned many times that he wanted Pence to prevent the certification.
Once the insurrection at the Capitol began rioters chanted about wanting to kill Pence, according to a Reuters photographer.
Although Pence said he was proud to certify Biden as president and that “there is almost no idea more un-American than the notion that any one person could choose the American president,” he still praised Trump Thursday, said Vanity Fair. He said Trump “set a bold new course for America,” with his stances on topics such as free trade and border security.
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Meanwhile, Trump is still haranguing officials for not backing up his claims of voter fraud connected to 2020 election results, most recently those in Michigan and Wisconsin. Previously, Wisconsin Elections Commission Chair Ann Jacobs told the New York Times that Trump supporters threatened her in online messages after the election.