Special counsel subpoenas Pence in Trump investigation: reports

by Julia Shapero - 02/09/23 7:40 PM ET

FILE – Former Vice President Mike Pence gestures as he addresses the Convocation at Liberty University, Sep. 14, 2022, in Lynchburg, Va. By refusing to go along with former president Donald Trump’s unconstitutional push to overturn the results of the 2020 election, Pence became a leading target of Trump’s wrath and a pariah in many Republican circles. But in the final weeks of an intensely competitive midterm election, Pence’s fortunes may be shifting. He’s an in-demand surrogate for Republican campaigns, including from some candidates who have spent much of the year hugging Trump and parroting his lie that the election was stolen. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)

The special counsel leading the Justice Department’s investigations into former President Trump has subpoenaed former Vice President Mike Pence, multiple outlets reported on Thursday.

Special counsel Jack Smith — who was appointed in November to oversee the investigation into the former president’s role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol and his handling of classified materials — is reportedly seeking documents and testimony from Pence, according to CNN.

The subpoena, which was first reported by ABC News, is seeking testimony from the former vice president about his interactions with Trump in the run up to the 2020 election, as well as on Jan. 6, 2021, itself, CNN reported.

The New York Times previously reported in November that the Justice Department was in talks with Pence’s representatives in an effort to obtain his testimony.

The former vice president played a central role in the events of Jan. 6 when he defied Trump’s requests to block the certification of the 2020 election.

As rioters broke into the Capitol, Trump fanned the flames, tweeting that “Mike Pence didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done.”

Several rioters could be heard chanting “Hang Mike Pence” amid the chaos that ensued.

The Hill has reached out to the Justice Department for comment.