Mike Pence broke his own tradition of not taking notes during meetings in the last weeks of Donald Trump’s presidency.
The former vice president felt obliged to note down his discussions in the lead-up to the January 6 attack on the Capitol amid pressure from Trump to reject the results of the 2020 presidential election.
The comments, made in an interview with CBS’ Face the Nation on Sunday, came less than a week after Trump was indicted on four counts in connection to the infamous day in Washington D.C.
Pence criticized Trump once again following the announcement of legal proceedings, stating that his former superior “should never be president.”
The two are both vying for the Republican nomination, although the ball remains firmly in Trump’s court with a monumental advantage in the polls.
What did Mike Pence say?
The 64-year-old claimed he was not much of a notetaker during his vice presidency, but made an exception in the weeks leading up to the Capitol riots.
“From time to time, particularly at important moments, I had a practice of scribbling a note or two on my calendar, just to memorialize it and remember it,” Pence told CBS.
“I generally didn’t make a practice of taking notes in meetings over the four-year period of time, but given the momentous events that were unfolding, I did take a few notes to remind myself of what had been said.”
On January 4, 2021, Trump and Pence met once again to discuss the possibility of the latter rejecting the results of the election.
Trump cited his unevidenced claims of electoral fraud and encouraged Pence to send the electoral votes back to their respective states.
Pence noted that even Trump’s counsel said he did not have the authority to perform such an action, to which he was told he should just reject the votes instead.
“Look, I’m a student of American history. I knew the founders of this country would never have given any one person the right to choose what Electoral College votes to accept and which ones to reject,” Pence said in the interview on Sunday.
“I was very consistent with the president about that, and my recollections all reflect that,” he continued.
“But you know, at the end of the day, the president continued to hold to that view. But I knew what my duty was, and as I said, by God’s grace, we did our duty on that fateful day.”
Pence was following from a previous public statement in which he condemned the former president’s actions in the lead-up to January 6.
“Our country is more important than one man. Our constitution is more important than any one man’s career,” Pence said last week.
“On January 6th, Former President Trump demanded that I choose between him and the Constitution. I chose the Constitution, and I always will.”
Shay Bottomley is a British journalist based in Canada. He has written for the Western Standard, Maidenhead Advertiser, Slough Express, Windsor Express, Berkshire Live and Southend Echo, and has covered notable events including the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
From 19FortyFive
The Second American Civil War Has Begun
