In a statement on Sunday, Former President Donald Trump suggested that former Vice President Mike Pence should have “overturned” the election on Jan. 6, 2021.
Trump has previously shown frustration with Pence’s decision not to reject the votes of states won by Joe Biden, but the statement Sunday was the most explicit in publicly sharing his wish.
“If the Vice President [Mike Pence] had ‘absolutely no right’ to change the Presidential Election results in the Senate, despite fraud and many other irregularities, how come the Democrats and RINO Republicans, like Wacky Susan Collins, are desperately trying to pass legislation that will not allow the Vice President to change the results of the election?” Trump said in his statement.
Trump was referring to the efforts in Congress to change the Electoral Count Act. The law currently governs the actions of Congress should there be any disputes about which candidate won which state.
Among the changes being considered by legislatures is making it more explicit that the vice president’s role is only ceremonial.
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However, Trump used these actions to further push the narrative that Pence should have stopped the certification of the election.
“Actually, what they are saying, is that Mike Pence did have the right to change the outcome, and they now want to take that right away,” Trump said. “Unfortunately, he didn’t exercise that power, he could have overturned the Election!”
Several lawmakers support the bipartisan talks to make changes, like Republican Maine Senator Susan Collins.
The White House responded to the statement from Trump, and press secretary Jen Psaki said it was “just a reminder of how unfit he is for office.”
These comments came just a day after the former president hinted at a 2024 run for the White House and dangled the idea of pardons for those charged with the Jan. 6 Capitol riots.
“If I run and I win, we will treat those people from January 6 fairly,” Trump said during his rally in Conroe, Texas. “We will treat them fairly, and if it requires pardons, we will give them pardons because they are being treated so unfairly.”
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