The Congressional committee probing the Capitol insurrection of January 6, 2021, is making progress with its investigation. This time, the panel is looking into getting former vice president Mike Pence to testify not only about the insurrection but also possibly over efforts to remove Trump from office.
A report by the Washington Post reveals that the congressional committee is debating whether or not to compel the former vice president to testify before the panel on his knowledge about the Capitol insurrection. The panel has also indicated that they want to question Pence about more than the riots.
The report further revealed that the committee is looking into a way to get Pence to testify without antagonizing him, noting that the panel is still debating on how to force testimonies from House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Republican Reps. Scott Perry and Jim Jordan.
“The panel has begun preliminary discussions with Pence over how to obtain his account of events, including the sustained pressure he received from Trump and other Republicans to block certification of Biden’s election victory,” said the report.
The panel also reportedly wants Pence’s testimony to be made public and would like to question the now-former vice president on certain details of his time as vice president to Trump. The panel was also interested in possible conversations that may have occurred surrounding the push for Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment and remove Trump from office and assume responsibilities as the acting president.
The panel is set to grill Pence’s former counsel Greg Jacob in February. Last fall, the committee had already questioned former federal judge J. Michael Luttig, who advised the former vice president’s legal team days leading up to the insurrection.
The former vice president’s team is already known to have been cooperating with the committee. Pence’s top aide, Marc Short, was previously revealed to have been cooperating with the panel, along with former press secretary Alyssa Farah and Keith Kellogg, among other individuals who are cooperating with the congressional committee.
A person with knowledge of the matter revealed that Short’s cooperation with the committee came with permission from Pence. Testimonies from people in Pence’s circle have proven helpful to the committee as it pieces together the events that took place leading up to the insurrection and during the riots.